


A Light In The Dark

by RxttwnLopez



Category: Supergirl (Comics), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Single Parents, SuperCorp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:34:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 84,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25223977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RxttwnLopez/pseuds/RxttwnLopez
Summary: When Lena is faced with fighting for sole custody of her daughter, the last thing that crossed her mind was falling in love with her daughter's social worker. Can Lena overcome her fear of letting someone new into her daughter's life or will she stay a single parent forever?
Relationships: Alex Danvers & Kara Danvers, Alex Danvers/Kelly Olsen, Kara Danvers & Winn Schott Jr., Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor/Supergirl, Samantha "Sam" Arias & Lena Luthor
Comments: 132
Kudos: 413





	1. Chapter 1

“May you all rise for Lord Justice Stephens.” The clerk announced once all of them had filed into the courtroom. Lena stood anxiously from the bench she was perched upon, taking the time to offer her two year old, Annalise, a small wave from across the room. The judge entered slowly and took his seat, before motioning for everybody else to do the same. He was dressed tidily in his robes, his natural hair concealed by an almost comical powdered wig. Much to her surprise, he was of a small stature and seemed to be somewhat young, being placed somewhere in his mid thirties. 

“Please state your names for the court record.” He spoke clearly, gesturing to Lena first, and then to the man who stood on the other side of the courtroom.

“Lena Kieran Luthor.” She spoke clearly, eliciting some shocked gasps from a couple of people around the room at the sound of her last name. She chose however to focus more on the chubby smile flashed by her daughter from the opposite bench. From the day that she was born, the tiny girl would always light up at the sound of her Mommy’s voice, and today was no exception. She sat off to the side with a court appointed social worker who was busying Annalise with the teddies that she had insisted on bringing with them today. 

“Andrew Clarke.” The man spoke through gritted teeth, his hands clenched into tight fists by his sides. He had hair cut close to his scalp, dyed a bleach blonde, as well as stark white skin and deep wrinkles around his eyes.

“Miss Luthor, will you give the name and birth date of your daughter please.” He asked concisely and she nodded shakily, very noticeably for the rest of the caseworkers. 

“Annalise Samantha Luthor.” She flashed a wide smile at her name and started clapping happily, drawing a pleasant smile from both her mommy and the judge.

“What a cool name, huh kiddo?” He smiled down at the toddler, easing Lena's nerves slightly with his gentle mannerisms. He soon looked up from the bench, ready to address the co parents once again with the guidelines of their case. “From what I have been made aware of, this will be a hearing for sole custody of two year old, Miss Annalise Samantha Luthor, is that correct, Ma’am?”

“That is correct, your honour.” She spoke clearly but nervously, knowing that if she didn’t present her own case correctly, she could lose many of the rights she currently had with her daughter. The thought of that made her head spin, over the past two years of her life, she hadn’t spent more than 12 hours away from her daughter, very much unlike the father who would often leave the state, and even the country, in favour of going on business trips. 

“Very well.” He responded, his voice deliberately indifferent. “As I’m sure you’re both aware, Miss Luthor, you will present your argument and tell me, along with my advisors, why you believe you should be entitled to sole custody. Since the case was brought upon you, Mister Clarke, it will not be necessary for you to speak, unless you think it will aid your case. The two of you have chosen not to use lawyers which puts you on a level playing field, any aid you receive from myself as the judge, will also be given as advice to the other party. Now we may proceed with the case, Miss Luthor, if you would take the stand and present your argument, the court will be ready to listen.”

“Thank you, your honour. Over the past two years I have dedicated my life to raising Annalise, the same cannot be said for her father.” Lena took a deep breath to gather her thoughts and calm her anger towards Andrew before she continued speaking. “We had gone our separate ways two months prior to her birth because he had hit me at home. I left straight after it happened. Since then, I have returned back to my old house which we used to share with Mister Clarke as I was the one who was responsible for the down payment. I think that sole custody would be most appropriate considering the fact that he was violent towards me, I don’t want my daughter to be put in a dangerous situation.” She nodded and sat back down, having made her main argument. Without a response from Andrew, this would have been all that she would have had to say, however, things did not seem to be that simple. 

There was a brief silence whilst the judge thought over what was said, finally looking towards Andrew to prompt some form of response. The man did not seem desperate to keep his child, he seemed more desperate to prove Lena wrong. 

“If I may, your honour…” Andrew took the stand and Annalise started to babble to herself in the background, shaking her favourite teddy and singing through the alphabet song that Lena had been so proud to teach her earlier this year. “Whilst Miss Luthor has told the truth of the situation, I feel as though it is important to alert you to the fact that she is unemployed, whereas I have a stable income at my office job. I do believe that I could be the one to best support my daughter financially as I actually have an income.” 

Lena could feel the anger bubbling through her veins as she stood up to defend herself. “Your Honour, I would like to make it clear that although I am unemployed, I am currently in the process of taking on the family company which should be finalised tomorrow. The success of this will leave me with upwards oh five-hundred-million dollars.”

Andrew stood up again, pressing his hands hard against the table to hopefully drain some of his anger so as to not shout in front of the judge. Needless to say, his aggression was obvious to the audience from the offset, even little Annalise started to move a little more, trying to interest the social worker in the game that she was so intent on playing with her teddies. “Lena, that doesn’t give you a stable income. You aren’t a good mother just because you love her!” He snapped, making everyone look up at him, their expressions completely shocked. 

“I agree, but I have spoken with accountants who have given me options to work with in order to ensure we would be financially stable, should the company collapse in my power. I know that I can provide for her.” Lena spoke back, her voice calm and even. Inside, she was begging for the case to be over quickly so she didn’t walk across the room and beat the living daylights out of him. It was taking every fibre of her being to stay calm whilst he insulted every good thing that she had ever done for her daughter. Lena was in no way convinced that she was a good person, but she was a damn fantastic mother and nobody could take that away from her.

“Thank you ma’am. Do either of you have anything more to add on the subject of money?” The judge asked, not shocked to see the two of them remaining seated, the brunette sure she had won that part of the custody battle. “Miss Luthor, is there anything else you would like to add further?” Judge Stephens asked, once again waving politely at the little girl who was waving animatedly along with the blonde social worker she was sat with. Lena caught the eye of the social worker in order to check up on Annie but she could feel herself drowning in the pools of blue. She had to tear herself from the situation in order to fight for her daughter, and whilst she didn’t want to look away, the decision was easy to make if it meant that Annie would be happy.

Lena took the stand once again and continued her argument for custody. The parents argued back and forth for the span of the next two hours, the judge often favouring Lena's side of the argument as he noticed her being more caring and interactive with the tiny brunette. Lena was full to the brim with confidence as soon as she finished her final argument, filling with pride and excitement with the prospect that she could take Annie home with her and never have to worry about her having to spend the night with Andrew again.

“Ladies, I have reached a judgement. Upon hearing your arguments and talking with your social worker, I have decided to grant Miss Luthor full custody of Miss Annalise Samantha Luthor.” The judge spoke, his eyes going between both of the parents, pleased to see the broad smile erupting on the face of the shorter woman.

“Thank you so much!” Lena exclaimed, running across the courtroom and scooping the two year old into her arms. “Annie, baby, mommy’s got you.” she squeezed tightly and the toddler just giggled and hugged her mommy in return. Before the hearing could be adjourned, Andrew was already storming out of the court, bringing an awkward end to the meeting. 

“Come on then, bug.” Lena smiled, having literally nothing that could dampen her mood right now, she had her baby all to herself and completely free from harm and she couldn’t ask for anything better. “How about we get some ice cream?”

“Yes mommy!” She beamed up at her, pushing her toys towards her mother so that she didn't have to carry them on the way to the car. “I can have choc-late?” She practically begged, bouncing as she sat on her mom’s hip.

Before Lena could reply, the social worker approached her and her heart skipped a beat. What if she had said the wrong thing during the trial? What if Annie wasn’t happy? What if Andrew had raised concerns about her parenting? She almost couldn’t stand to run all of the possibilities through her ridiculously anxious mind, but thankfully the taller blonde interrupted her train of thought.

“Hi, I’m sorry if this sounds weird at all but you must have gone through hell to get here and I want you to know that if you need advice on anything with Annalise, then I’m happy to be around to help you.” She spoke kindly, waving at Annie who was happily clapping at the sound of the blonde’s voice.

“I- thank you?” The mother frowned a little. she couldn’t decide if she was just being kind or if she was insulting her parenting skills. 

“I didn’t mean it like that!” She hastily corrected herself. “My sister has a one year old and she’s finding it hard enough to raise her with her wife, I just don’t want you to struggle, and Miss Annalise is a real sweetie!” She pinched her cheeks. 

“Oh, well thank you very much.” Lena blushed. Sure the woman was just being kind but this was the most female attention she’d had in almost a year. 

“Put your number in my phone and I can be around if you need any help at all? I know you have that business meeting tomorrow… I’m not a creep, I just paid attention to the trial.” She laughed a bit, noticing the weird look on Lena’s face.

“Oh, thank you.” she smiled a bit, finding it hard to remember the last time somebody genuinely seemed to care about her instead of taking one look at her last name and fleeing in terror. She quickly typed in her number and put her name text to it. 

“I think it’s quite rude that I know your name but you don’t know mine…” She tried her luck. “I’m Kara.” She held out her hand to shake. Lena took it awkwardly and tried her hardest to ignore what could only be described as a spark between the two women. Lena knew she couldn’t get involved, Annie needed her more than Lena needed to flirt.

“Look. I appreciate what you’re doing, I really do, but I’m not in the mood right now. I just got full custody of Annie and I just want to spend some time with her. You’re really kind and I might be making a fool of myself but I can’t be getting involved with people right now.” Lena sighed, almost wanting to laugh at her own maturity. If someone had told her she’d be acting like this when she was in High School, she would’ve laughed in their faces. Here she was, turning down the prettiest girl she’d ever met in favour of her daughter. She was a mushy mother now and she wouldn’t change it for the world. 

“I respect that.” Kara smiled sweetly as she swept her hair over her shoulder, an action that Lena didn’t miss.The same way that Lena didn’t miss the way she licked her lips and tucked her phone back in her bag. 

“Hey, so I better get going to get my munchkin some ice cream like I promised her. I’ll see you around?” Lena fastened the buttons on her daughter’s coat and tugged on her little mittens. 

“I guess so.” Kara waved excitedly to Annie, who returned the wave with the same energy, before offering Lena a sweet smile. She didn’t miss how the blonde’s steel blue eyes lit up for the whole conversation, or how good she was with her daughter. She didn’t miss the way their fingers brushed when they exchanged phones. She didn’t miss the way that her stomach seemed to be full of butterflies as she watched Kara walk away slowly. She didn’t want to admit it to herself, but she didn't fail to notice the way that Kara’s body moved as she walked back to the other side of the courtroom… surely everyone saw Kara this way. How could you work alongside such a woman and not be intrigued about every little thing in her life.

Before today, Lena could barely fathom the idea of love at first sight, but after she’d seen a woman as seemingly loving and beautiful as Kara had been. She couldn’t think how anybody else could have felt this way if they hadn’t met Kara beforehand. She had this energy about her which made Lena’s head positively spin, she was sure it was an energy which no other being on this planet could possibly possess. She shook the girl from her mind and drew all of her attention back to the little girl who was babbling happily in her arms.

Lena held her baby extra close as she walked to the ice cream store, chatting happily with the toddler about all of her favourite things and pointing out the different birds that flew past them both. She held Annie extra close when the got on the subway which was really nothing out of the ordinary, the tiny girl had a terrible anxiety surrounding the trains, she really hated everyone being so close to her ever since she was present for the most recent assassination attempt on her mother. She held Annie even closer as they ordered their ice cream, even letting her order three scoops for the first time ever. Lena was a good mom, she knew that now and she was sure nobody could take that away from her. 

They sat together happily, Lena spooning the ice cream into her daughter’s mouth in order to keep her hands and face from getting sticky. The duo had planned to go to Sam’s house after the hearing, wanting someone to share the news with, whether it was good or bad. Sam was basically Annie’s favourite person so it didn’t take the girl long before she was chatting excitedly about how she gets to see auntie Sammie soon.

“Mama! We see Sammie?” Annie bounced in her seat, making her shoulder length brown curls bounce along with her. She had two lines of chocolate around her lips, making her smile look sillier than usual, and she was holding a little green plastic spoon in one of the hands that she was wildly waving around.

“After you finish your ice cream, we can go to aunt Sam’s house.” Lena beamed, checking her phone for the time before tucking it away again. She hated technology around her daughter as a general principle, but that didn’t stop her from spending all of her free time developing new devices intended to improve the lives of others. “Miss Annie, would you look at the state of you!” Lena chuckled to herself, pulling out a wet wipe in favour of wiping the chocolatey mess from her daughter’s hands and face. As she did so, the seemingly quiet ice cream parlour bubbled with low murmurs and small comments that she wouldn’t have noticed if they weren’t staring directly at her. The mother heard her name and her body instantly propelled her into fight or flight, ultimately deciding she stood a better chance with the flight option.

With no time to pack up their belongings, Lena simply grabbed her daughter off of the chair and ran to the closest place that she knew of. Sure, she broke a heel on the way as she stumbled up the stairs of the apartment building that she was heading to, but she didn’t care about the damage, as long as she got her daughter inside safely. The only thing she could register were Annie’s screams as she pounded on her best friend’s door, almost sobbing for herself before the door swung open to reveal a casual looking Sam Arias on the other side. 

Before they had shown up, Sam had been scrolling through twitter where she had been tagged in numerous posts. Each of them revealed different videos of a bomb exploding in an ice cream parlour, the one that her best friend had evidently just run away from.

“Jesus Christ… come in, Lee.” Sam instantly let them both inside, taking Annie from her arms and checking the girl for bumps and bruises which she knew Lena would have been trying her hardest to protect her from. Annie couldn’t stop sobbing and neither of the women could blame her, the experience would have been scary for anyone, let alone a two year old. 

Sam cuddled her so closely, knowing that Lena wouldn’t talk about whatever had happened until her daughter was well out of earshot, not wanting her to know how many people wanted her beloved mommy to be dead. Annie cuddled so closely to her auntie, nobody speaking for a long while other than Sam’s small reassuring whispers to the shaken two year old. It took hours of gentle reassurance before Annie finally spoke. Sam had taken care of the both of them, bringing them blankets and coffee and hot chocolate, putting on Annie’s favourite movie and bringing her her stuffed toys from the bed in the spare room. It was only after all of this that Annie wiggled sleepily in Lena’s lap, her mother wincing when she jolted her arm, but said nothing in favour of her daughter’s happiness. 

“Mommy, I’m really sleepy now.” Annie whimpered a little, ducking her face in her mommy’s neck, her huge green eyes drooping slightly as the clock turned to 7:30pm.

“How about we have a sleepover here tonight, huh?” Sam asked, instantly coming to the rescue with a pair of pyjamas for the little girl, changing her quickly and going to take her to bed before being stopped in her tracks by Lena.

“How about mommy puts you to bed, huh?” Lena spoke for the first time, not letting Sam take her out of her lap. The mother of the two year old had seemed suddenly incredibly protective of the tiny version of herself, rightly so after the day that they had had together. The day had in fact been an emotional rollercoaster, and Lena couldn’t bear the thought of anything going differently today. What if she hadn’t gained full custody? What if she hadn’t overheard the plots of the hitmen in the ice cream parlour? These questions plagued the twenty five year-old’s mind as she carried Annie upstairs to the spare room, checking all of the doors and windows were locked on the way there.

“Sing mommy?” She mumbled sleepily as her mom tucked her under the covers, placing a blanket over her baby as well. 

“Of course, baby girl.” 

“Fank you.” Her sleepy mumbles continued and Lena felt her heart melt over how sweet she was. She slowly sang over the lullabies that she knew had calmed her previously and watched her daughter relax into the mattress. She spent longer than she realised watching Annie sleep, studying her face, the way she breathed, the way her small mouth opened and let out gentle snores. She smiled at the shoulder length, almost black, hair which was spread across the pillow and couldn’t help herself from stroking a finger over her usually dimpled cheek. She was so unaware of how long she had spent at her daughter's bedside that she almost had a heart attack when Sam had cleared her throat in the doorway. 

“I’ve got tea, coffee and alcohol… wanna come and talk?” Sam offered out her hand and nodded wearily. 

“Thank you.” She sighed, leaving a few kisses on Annie’s forehead before leaving the room with the nightlight on and the door slightly cracked open. 

She chose to nurse a glass of scotch, knowing she would do anything in her power to forget the stress and fear that had coursed through her veins from morning until the evening. She leaned forward to pour her second glass when Sam joined her on the couch, bringing her a bowl of mac and cheese to pressure her best friend into eating something. 

“Sam, Annie could’ve died. For the second time. I put her in so much danger.” Lena spoke, a lump instantly forming in her throat that she didn't even try to fight. She let out an almighty sob and Sam gathered her into her chest, letting her cry for as long as she needed.

“She’s safe right now babe, and so are you.” She urged the bowl of food closer to her, knowing she would make herself even more hysterical if she drank on an empty stomach, Lena ate a small spoonful before pushing it aside, almost feeling like she could vomit. “You can stay here as long as you like if you don’t want to be alone. Annie can have the spare room as always and you can have my bed, I promise it’s not a problem at all.” 

“Thank you… I was so happy this morning when we left court, I even let her get ice cream.” Lena let out a strangled laugh at the way she had thought things would be simple after the trial was over. Her parenting tactics usually left no room for junk food, often opting for healthy and vegan options to feed her tiny family to the point where Sam had vegan alternatives for every junk food in the cupboards just for her best friend and her daughter. Ice cream had been a very special treat for the both of them and Sam caught onto this, realising that the attack must’ve caught the two of them completely off guard. 

“I mean, you’d think prison would restrain most people from sending out hitmen… I guess I underestimated my fucking brother once again. I’ll tell you what, babe, that monster never fails to surprise me.” Lena, slipping more into her drunken state, laughed at her own sick joke. Sam did nothing to stop her dark humour, realising that it was a much needed coping mechanism for someone as damaged as her best friend.

“I mean, Lex is one terrible man.” Sam sighed, feeling terribly guilty for the fact that Lena had to deal with such a terrible family all of the time. 

“Yeah, but he’s still my brother.” She sighed. Lena had never before gone into detail with Sam about her relationship with Lex. Before his crimes, she simply didn’t think it to be important to share information about him, and after his crimes it became too painful to even say his name out loud. “You know, he used to be my best friend?” 

“Really?” Sam asked, her voice unwavering. She wasn’t necessarily interested in Lex beyond the point of Lena. She knew that the evil man in no way defined her personality and she refused to believe that her family would in any way impact who she became. She had been close to Lena since they were eighteen when they worked at a bar, often spending long evenings together pulling pints and being objectified by men. They played off the insults and unwanted sultry looks that were sent their way, using them as a means of entertainment to get through their tedious shifts. 

Lena had never wanted to be a part of the family business, or so she told Sam at the time. The taller brunette had later discovered that the Luthor family company was actually the perfect encapsulation of all of her interests. It linked strong management skills with immensely complicated science… the only downfall was the fact that these were also linked with an immense evil and discrimination that Lena had refused to be associated with. Secretly, she was desperate to be involved. She wanted the validation from her mother and brother that she was smart and she had the potential to be a scientist, but she knew that the validation would only come once she had submitted to evil, and she knew that Lena would never be capable of such things.Instead Lena grew separate from her family, arguing with the men in her life, including but not limited to, her adoptive father, her brother and the father of her daughter. This, as Lena was currently explaining, had enraged her brother to an unimaginable extent. The bald headed man had taken this as the incentive he needed to start sending hits out on his little sister. 

“After all… who could say no to the most powerful Luthor.” Lena finished her explanation, no longer crying but slightly slurring her words as she finished off her fourth glass of scotch.

“Shit, Lee, I truly had no idea. I knew he was bad but I was never aware of how bad he was to you.” The taller brunette tucked a blanket around her smaller friend who was reaching sleepily to her phone, wanting to check for notifications before she went to sleep.   
She saw the time on the screen and laughed at herself for being so exhausted at literally nine at night, she didn’t blame herself though, anyone in her situation would likely feel the same. She knew from way too much experience that avoiding hit men truly was a strenuous task. 

Two notifications lit up her screen, the first was one which was likely to have been sent out to every phone in the country… possibly every phone in the world. It was a statement that made her feel sick to her stomach as she read the pixelated words: BREAKING: Lena Luthor and young daughter victims of yet another murder attempt from an unknown individual. She rolled her eyes, almost laughing as they referred to her serial killer of a brother as an ‘unknown individual’.

The next notification couldn’t help to bring a smile to her face, despite the fact that that it had come from such a tragic situation. Sam noticed the sudden change in Lena but had decided to say nothing on the matter, realising that any kind of happiness right now was worth being kept a secret if that’s how Lena wanted it to be.

Kara: Hi Lena, please tell me if this is inappropriate but I just wanted to check up on you and Annalise. I’m sorry to hear what happened today. I know I might just be a stranger to you but I want you to know that I will be here for you if you need anything at all. My best wishes to both you and Annalise - K x

Lena couldn’t help but feel her stomach fill with butterflies, more than likely brought on by the fact that she had drained half a bottle of alcohol. The dutch courage spurred her to reply to the text, wanting to thank the beautiful stranger for being so caring without any obligation to be that way. 

Lena: Hi, thank you so much. Annie is really shaken and so am I… but we’ll get over it, it’s nothing out of the ordinary for us. Don’t worry about helping us with anything, but I truly am thankful for this text. - L x 

Kara: I’m so glad that you’re both okay!! I’ll be honest, I was a little worried when I hadn’t heard from you. I’ll let you get on with your evening now. I’ll talk to you soon? Have a good evening. - K x

Lena: I’d love to talk to you soon, have a good evening too, Kara. - L x

Lena went up to Sam’s room after she had finished and got into bed with her best friend. Sam wordlessly lifted the covers and beckoned for her to get into bed, knowing Lena wouldn’t have wanted to spend the night in her bed alone after having such a traumatic day. Sadly enough this was almost a routine for them as Lena set her head on the pillow and her phone on the bedside table and drifted into a peaceful sleep, only being woken once in the night by the tiny body of her daughter wiggling in between the women after seeking comfort for a nightmare. Lena couldn’t help but be thankful for the fact that the only fears that were plaguing them now were those of nightmares, rather than real life threats. Lena could barely fathom the idea that she would be worrying more tomorrow about the way that she had texted Kara earlier that evening. Something like that seemed so trivial in comparison with the stress that she was faced with currently.


	2. 2

Lena woke up at 4am, not shocked to see herself laying next to both Sam and Annie as she slowly recalled the events of the previous day. She took one look at her peacefully sleeping daughter and pulled her impossibly closer, not wanting the safety of the situation to end. She must have pressed at least a hundred kisses to Annie’s temple, grateful that her little munchkin didn’t wake up with all of the attention. 

After half an hour of appreciation for her tiny, yet incredible, family, she pulled herself from under the comfort of the bed covers. She knew she had to get into work for seven that morning, it was non-negotiable. She could not wait to own LuthorCorp, nothing would make her life easier than being able to decide her own working hours with a multi-million dollar buffer in case anything went wrong. She was desperate to be able to take sick days and holiday from work and have time to spend with her toddler who seemed to be developing so much recently, even if her mother couldn’t be there to witness all of it.

The thought of missing Annie’s childhood all but shattered Lena’s heart and the thought alone reinforced the fact that she had to be at the office in merely a few hours to take over whatever rotten legacy her criminal family had left for her to fix for them. So, with this newfound determination to do well by her daughter, Lena took a shower and got herself ready for the all important meeting, borrowing one of Sam’s blouses and wearing the same trousers she had worn to court yesterday. She poured black coffee into the biggest mug she could find in her best friend’s cabinet and drank it within a matter of gulps. She was ready for the day by 6am, meaning that she had some time to spend with Annie before she had to be at the office which was conveniently only a five minute walk from Sam’s apartment. 

Lena ran her hand through her dark brown hair, smiling a little despite her situation. Yesterday, she had been put through hell and back, but that didn’t stop her from being ridiculously optimistic. She was going to make the best for her daughter and the first step to doing so involved signing three simple papers in a meeting that she finally got to go to this morning. She felt herself smiling proudly as she heard two pairs of footsteps across the hardwood floors, accompanied by two happy seeming voices.

“Mommy.” Annie mumbled, reaching her arms out sleepily to Lena who was more than happy to take her from Sam’s arms. 

“Oh my sweet girl, did you sleep well?” She asked, sending the taller girl a thankful smile and raking her hands through Annie’s knotted hair. She was met with a stream of sleepy mumbles and happy grunts from the two year old as she basked in the cuddle for a couple more minutes before getting some cereal out to feed the little girl, wanting to make sure she was well fed before she left.

“Lee, what’s your plan for Annie when you go into work?” Sam asked, setting herself down at the table with a mug of her own coffee. Her hair was tugged into a messy bun on the top of her head and she had slight bags under her eyes from being woken so early by such an energetic toddler who had found her way into her bed in the early hours of the morning. 

“I was going to take her into daycare for a couple of hours… unless you're not busy? I’d rather not leave her with someone random right now, especially after what had happened yesterday.” She trailed off a little guiltily, wringing her hands in her lap as she almost obsessively checked the time.

“Of course I’ll take her for a few hours, I don’t know a single other person in National City who has plans at seven in the morning!” The taller girl laughed at her nervous friend, hoping her own laughter would help with the anxiety she was facing.

“You are an absolute angel! I could kiss you right now, Miss Arias!” Lena pulled her in closely and Sam pushed her back playfully. 

“You should save the kisses for the Kara girl you were texting last night…” Sam mumbled with a chuckle as she took Annie out of her seat to cuddle her and guide her towards the banana that her mom had cut up for her.

“I don’t know what you just said but I’m ignoring you until I’m done with work! I love you both so much, especially you, Annie bug!” Lena bent down to squeeze her daughter and kiss her repeatedly before she rushed out the door, but not without calling out another thank you to her best friend. 

The meeting dragged a little but Lena surprisingly didn’t mind too much as she signed through a mountain of documents in order to finally own what she believed to be rightfully hers. She had the company now, she had the power and she could finally use it for good, no matter what the majority of the country thought of her. She smiled the whole time and felt her stomach flip with excitement when she was given the keys to the building. This was her future now, she could change her legacy. LuthorCorp was no longer, L-Corp was in existence from this day onwards. She could feel the excitement coursing through her veins as she left the meeting room.

She pulled her phone from her briefcase and eagerly clicked the most recent contact, so used to only really talking to Sam that she didn’t even think about it when she practically bounced in time to the ringing.

“Hello?” A less familiar voice answered the call as she settled in her brand new office. Through her excitement, Lena barely registered the voice on the other end of the phone, instead, breaking out into a stream of excited chatter that was meant for Sam.

“I did it! The company is finally mine!” Lena beamed and almost giggled at herself. “Wanna come and check out my new office? Actually… That’s not a question, it’s actually a demand. Come and visit and bring lunch with you, just come to L-Corp and ask to see the boss!” Lena smiled so wide her cheeks hurt. She didn’t wait for Sam to reply before she hung up in favour of tending to the woman who was knocking on her door. It wasn’t unlike Lena for her to hang up after she had said what she wanted to, the two women were so comfortable with each other that replies often weren’t needed. 

A woman walked into the room, responding to the beckoning from her new boss, smiling nervously as she tried to weigh up the intentions of Lena who didn’t seem nearly as menacing as her previous boss. She looked small behind the desk in such a large room, her hair down and flowing past her shoulders and her computer screen open, displaying a photo of her and a toddler as her background. It seemed nearly alien to the woman that this girl was a Luthor, she looked completely harmless.

“Hi, I’m Jess… I’m the personal assistant here. Of course, you’re more than welcome to hire somebody else, but for the meantime, I’m here to tend to anything that needs doing. I must say, Miss Luthor, that a name change this soon into taking over the company is a very ambitious move on your behalf. I do commend you for it.” Jess rambled nervously and Lena gave her a welcoming smile, offering her a seat opposite her.

“Please, call me Lena. You must be fantastic at your job for Lex to keep you around! He struggles to keep me around, and I’m his sister.” Lena clearly referenced the events from the day prior and chuckled, despite how deeply ler little joke had hurt her. “The name change was a necessity, really, I wanted to get as far away from my brother’s crimes as I could whilst still having enough of a presence to make a change… not an ideal situation but I can’t complain.”

“That makes sense, Miss Luth- Lena.” 

“So… I guess the first thing I should talk to you about is your lunch break. Feel free to take an hour whenever is best suited to you, just check in with me first so I’m not waiting around for someone who isn’t in the office. And I have a friend coming up to my office today or lunch so feel free to let her up whenever she gets here.” Lena told her, hoping that speaking as if she already knew what she was doing would help her to settle in to the job, and help Jess feel calmed by the fact that she would be keeping her job as well. 

“Thank you so much, Lena… I can tell you that I already prefer you to your brother.” The assistant stood nervously and made her way to the door. “If you need anything at all then just be sure to call through to me and I’ll get it to you as soon as I can.”

From then, Lena was left alone in her office for the next few hours, so excited to give Sam and Annie the tour of her new office. She knew she had so much work to do, but she also knew that work could wait until she had fully settled in. She spent the morning glancing over all the old documents, trying to find ways to amend the mistakes of her brother and making notes of everything that she found. She was disposing of documents and blueprints for some form of evil technology when there was a knock at the office door. She called for whoever it was to come in, expecting Annie to run across the room and Sam to congratulate her loudly. Needless to say, she was stunned to see Kara standing awkwardly, holding every kind of food known to man.

“I didn’t know what you’d want to eat so… we have burgers, salads, a pizza, some sandwiches.” Kara smiled and took a few steps into the room.

“Kara?” Lena gaped, “What are you doing here?”

“You called this morning…” She spoke slowly, unable to peel her eyes away from the woman in front of her. The way her long brown hair fell over her shoulders made Kara feel almost weak at the knees, she just wanted to walk over and run her hands through it, it was so dark which proved to be a beautiful contrast to the palest skin and greenest eyes she had ever seen. She shook herself from her thoughts when Lena reached for her phone in order to show Kara that she hadn’t called her.

“Oh shit… I didn’t mean to call you! Sam is usually my most recent contact but I guess you were last since I text you last night…” Lena tried her hardest to explain without getting flustered. She couldn’t help the blush that creeped up her cheeks as she thought about the situation though. Kara had gone to basically every restaurant in the city, just to make sure she had something that she would like for lunch, nobody - not even Sam - would do that for her. 

“If you wanted Sam to be here then I can definitely leave…” Kara scurried towards the door and Lena found her eyes following the sweet girl, unable to hide the smile that graced her usually cold seeming features. She didn't know what compelled her to do so but before she could stop herself she felt herself speaking.

“Well, we can’t let all of this food go to waste… can we?” The brunette almost teased and Kara responded with a giddy grin as she made her way over to the couch by the coffee table in the near-stranger’s office. 

Her eyes floated around the room and took everything in, wanting to try and understand Lena more as a person. She was determined to make some kind of friendship from this - Lena didn’t strike her as the kind of person who had many friends. The room was large and almost cold looking with a white leather couch, a grey desk and neutral walls and carpet. The only colour came from the four framed photographs on the desk. The first one was of Lena and her daughter with two of the widest smiles that Kara had ever seen, immediately next to it was a photograph of Lena with a random woman, the two of them cradling Lena’s baby bump at what Kara would have guessed to have been towards the end of her pregnancy. She couldn’t help the pang of guilt she felt as she saw the way that the other woman had been touching Lena and she had to forcibly remind herself that they were practically strangers, it was in no way normal for her to be getting jealous. The other two photos were of Annalise, both times the girl was staring cheekily at the camera and Kara couldn’t help but note how similar she looked to Lena with her dark hair, stark green eyes and dimples. 

“She’s so beautiful.” Kara smiles brightly, walking over to the photos of Annalise and picking one up. “Tell me about her.” She asked gently, handing the photo over to the woman who she intended to make a friend out of. 

“Annie? Well, I wouldn’t know where to start.” Lena flashed a bashful smile to Kara, noting how the conversation felt so natural. She took a second to enjoy the smile from the beautiful girl, noticing how it reached all the way to her eyes that were hidden slightly behind her thick rimmed glasses. 

“Start anywhere, she was so talkative when I was with her.” Kara encouraged gently and that’s all Lena needed to encourage a conversation between the two of them. 

“She’s such a sweet girl, and she’s talking constantly. Her aunt Sam says she’s the complete opposite of how I am, and I can’t help but agree.”

“You seem to enjoy talking to me.” Kara tried her chances and Lena smiled, showing her dimples once again.

“We can call it beginners luck.” Lena winked in response and it took all Kara had to keep herself from melting to a puddle right then and there. “Have you got a salad in there?” She continued, noticing Kara’s reaction but determined to distract herself from it. She positively could not have a relationship, there was no way she was letting someone into Annie’s life, it was all too risky. 

Kara handed her a salad which Lena gratefully accepted after explaining how she was a vegan and would have made it more clear to Kara had she known that she was the one she had called. The two of them fell into awkward small talk before the blonde plucked up the courage to ask the question that was burning at the tip of her tongue, and had been for the majority of lunch.

“How are you, Lena?” She sighed gently and the brunette’s eyes widened. “I mean after yesterday… that must be a lot to process.” 

For the past hour, Kara had done an incredible job of breaking down Lena’s barriers. She had seen a few genuine smiles from the girl and that is more than what can generally be said for those who had met the youngest Luthor. In a matter of seconds Lena could feel her barriers springing into action once again and Kara could see it in her eyes as the warm green turned icy and sad. Her lips folded from a smile to a tight line and her forehead went from smooth to wrinkled in a matter of seconds. She had overstepped and had only just realised how stupid she had been to mention anything.

“I think you should get going, Kara.” Lena stood up and made to go back to her desk, pulling out her wallet in order to pay for the lunch that had been brought to her. “Thank you for the food but I should be working.” As she spoke the excuse she could feel how weak and fake it sounded, but she didn’t care. She couldn’t talk to a stranger about Lex. Hell, Sam barely knew the smallest detail about her brother and she had known her for years. 

“I didn’t mean to overstep, I’m so sorr-”

“Don’t apologise. I just have to work, Kara.” Lena spoke evenly, her words only saying exactly what they needed to say. She was completely neutral and cold and that terrified the other woman. She wasn’t scared of the brunette, more that she was scared for her. It must be terribly lonely living with only a two year old for company, she thought as she left the room without speaking another word. 

Lena sat quietly at her desk, her head in her hands, pounding aggressively against her skull as if it wanted to break free. She hated this trait of hers, she hated how scared she was of relationships of any kind. She knew what she loved though. Her daughter was the light of her life and no matter how she felt about everything else, she knew that nothing with Annie would change. She typed out a full office email, telling everyone that she would be working from home for the day in order to sort out some last minute changes for her new job. In reality, she was going home to spend time with Annie but her coworkers didn’t need to know that. She wanted to kiss her baby after everything that they had seen yesterday. She wanted to promise her that her mommy would never leave her.

She packed up her bag and took her work laptop with her, knowing that she should get through the finances when Annie got put down to bed tonight. It was three o’clock when she left the office and she was still plagued with the guilt of how she treated Kara. Nevertheless, she brushed off her own emotions and walked excitedly to her best friend’s house to pick up the little girl who would’ve just woken up from her nap. Ten minutes later, she found herself being pounced on by a tiny version of herself. She scooped her up, loving how much the tiny girl loved her in return. 

“Hey, Lee, I need to talk to you…” Sam said solemnly as she held tightly onto her daughter who looked grumpy and tired, much different to her normal personality. She was instantly worried and pressed a kiss to Annie’s hairline as she grumbled ‘mommy’ needily. 

“What’s up?” She asked nervously, sitting herself on the couch and tucking her feet under herself, cradling a sleepy toddler who had obviously not been put down for her nap today. 

“Little Miss wouldn’t take her nap today. She was too scared to be alone and begged to be with me all the time. She kept babbling about some kind of boom.” Sam ran a hand through Annie’s hair and Lena felt herself crying before she could even register her own emotions. The day had been a shitstorm, that one thing was for certain. 

“I’ll take her home and see if I can get her to sleep. Thanks for the help Sam, but I should get going.”

“No, you can stay as long as you need, I promise.” 

“She probably misses her own bed, and I have work to do. I’ll call you later, okay?” Lena did all she could to stop herself from sobbing and Sam could see right through it. Nevertheless, seh let her best friend go, sighing at the sight of the two year old clinging helplessly to her mommy’s neck.

It was a half an hour subway ride back to Lena’s apartment and she had Annie wrapped so closely to her the whole time that she barely even registered herself getting off the train and walking to her own penthouse. It wasn’t until she tried to use her frostbitten fingers to unlock the door that she was drawn back into reality slightly.

“Annie, how do we feel about some cocoa? And mommy can put on a movie too?” Her mom asked, using her best excited voice despite feeling the anxiety eating away at her like a disease.

“Pease mommy!” She brightened up a little at the proposal of hot cocoa, knowing she very rarely got the treat. Her mommy found it to be the most endearing thing that she couldn’t quite pronounce ‘please’ yet, but she always gave it her best shot.

She placed Annie on the floor and she ran over to the couch, fiddling with a blanket to try and get ready for the movie whilst her mother made them drinks. She beamed widely at her mommy when she came into the room, looking up at her with her wide green eyes as a way of asking for help getting cosy under the blanket that she had awkwardly tangled herself in. Lena gently wrapped Annie up, her heart melting when the little girl pressed herself into her mommy’s side and stuck her thumb in her mouth as a means of comfort. 

Lena wrapped an arm around the tiny girl, basking in the feeling of absolute joy that came hand in hand with being a mother; much like the feelings of stress and terror. All the negativity was worth it though when she got to share moments like these with her toddler who already seemed to be able to say so much more than Lena had remembered her saying merely a week ago. She flicked on one of Annie’s favourite cartoons that she loved watching but had never really paid attention to herself, smiling proudly as her daughter’s face lit up at the sight of the girls horse riding across the screen. 

The couple remained in bliss for a few hours, sipping at their cocoa, and watching some form of children’s show before they had to break their bliss and move to make dinner. The meal was made quickly, a simple pasta with vegetables and tofu which she knew Annie loved. By the sounds of what Sam had said earlier, comfort foods would be a necessity for the next few days until she managed to get Annie feeling back to her true self again. She sat her on the side whilst she cooked, giving the little girl a carrot to snack on whilst she cooked the meal for the two of them, giggling as she waved the vegetable around to excitedly that it flew across the expanse of the kitchen. 

“Miss Annalise, we should not be playing with our food!” Lena criticised her gently “Sit nicely in your seat and we can have our dinner!” She smiled more when she spoke that time, rolling her eyes as she always did at the fact that having a toddler meant she had to eat dinner before five o’clock.

“Veggies!” Annie giggled, an excited grin spreading over her cheeks as she messily tucked into her favourite dish. She had pasta sauce smeared all over her face and tofu squished between her fingers by the time that she had finished her food. Lena tidied the kitchen a little, accidentally crashing a few pots and pans together in the process. The girl’s usually bright smile had been replaced by two very vacant looking eyes which soon filled with scared tears.

“Hey, hey, hey.” Lena scooped her up worriedly, not minding how Annie had hit her in response to the sudden contact. The girl was usually so calm and sweet that her mom knew she must have been acting out of pure fear. “You’re okay, baby girl, mommy’s got you.” She whispered sweetly, stroking her hand through her hair and rocking slowly and carefully all the way up to Annie’s room.

“Mommy. Boom.” She whimpered, clinging nervously to Lena who was trying her hardest to keep her own fears at bay. 

“We’re safe from that baby, nothing bad will happen to you. I’ll always protect you.” Lena muttered, just letting Annie cry her fears out, not sure how to comfort her other than with reassurance and cuddles. She slowly changed her into her comfiest pyjamas and took her into her own room, deciding to let her sleep in her bed, hoping to ward off any potential nightmares. It took nearly a whole hour of reassurance and comforting back rubs before Annalise was finally sleeping, one hand gripping her mommy’s shirt and the other being utilised for the sole purpose of thumb sucking. 

It was nine o’clock before Lena got the chance to check her phone and she was truly surprised by the texts to say the least. She had five unread messages which she scrolled through before deciding that not all of them were worth answering. The first two were from Kara, blatantly nervous texts about the earlier events reading:

Hi Lena, I’m sorry again about earlier. I wasn't thinking about it properly when I asked. - K x

Sorry again! Just wanted to check in and see if you feel any better. There’s a new coffee shop near me and they make a killer hot chocolate, I’m sure it would be a hit with you and Annalise. - K x

Lena felt a smile creep up on her before she banished it and typed out a short response, her brain screaming for her to not get involved.

Don’t worry about it, Kara, not your fault Lex wants me dead. Guess I’ll see you around - L x

It was neither a yes nor a no to Kara but she needed her options open right now, especially with how nervous Annie was acting. Even after merely two days, Kara was becoming harder and harder to resist, but she couldn’t bring herself to let her in yet. Two days was too soon for a friendship, let alone a romance, and she knew almost for a fact that Kara wouldn’t feel the same way. I mean, how could she? Lena was damaged, parents dead and adopted by a family of criminal masterminds at age four, abused over her lifetime, pregnant by twenty one, leaving her body stretched and damaged. She felt unattractive from head to toe, inside and out. She briefly entertained the idea that maybe she wasn’t letting bubbly blonde in because of her own insecurities, but quickly ignored the rational part of her brain to tell herself that she was, in fact, doing the right thing. 

She smiled at the next text from Sam who had been worrying about the two of them for a while. She clicked on it and typed out a loving answer to the brunette who had also included exciting details about her own life. 

Hey Lee! I hope everything’s good with you and Little Miss. Rubes is home from her trip with school tomorrow so I think we might run over to see you, I know for a fact she will have brought her favourite auntie a present. You and Annie are still welcome here anytime you want to come over. Fill me in on any gossip soon, babes. Love you lots, give the munchkin a kiss from me! - S

Hey Sam! Annie’s not done too well today, She’s only just fallen asleep, she’s been crying for hours. the poor thing. Bring Rue over tomorrow and I’ll make us all dinner. Hopefully Annie will be feeling better about all of this or I don't know what I’ll do. - L

Is she still not doing well? I thought she might have just been missing you? Keep an eye on her Lee, she’s been through a lot. - S

She’s sleeping in with me tonight, hate to call in sick on my first real day on the job… but mommy duties call and I don’t feel good about leaving her at a daycare tomorrow. - L

Do what you have to do babe. Show them who the boss is ;) - S

I won't have much of a choice… how are you so graceful, being a single mother sucks, even if you have billions of dollars :( - L

Billions!?!?! And I have years of experience on you… but if you wanted to find a lucky lady, I would be more than happy to babysit my munchkin for the evening - S

L-Corp is worth more than I thought, so I’m paying from now on… its ridiculous to have this much money all of a sudden. And maybe one day, I just want to focus on Annie now though. Would be lying if i said I didn’t miss dating though - L

You and me both. I’ve gotta pick Ruby up early tomorrow so I’m gonna get as much sleep as I can. Goodnight babes, love you - S

Love you too - L

Lena followed suit and put her phone and laptop down on the bedside table, snuggling up with Annie and closing her eyes. Nothing woke you up early like a toddler jumping on your chest as the sun rose and Lena was determined to make the most of the ability to have an early night whilst she still could, knowing that her hard work would kick in tomorrow. She was knocked out within a matter of minutes, barely feeling Annie cuddle impossibly closer in her sleep , the two girls sleeping soundly next to one another until six in the morning, something that Lena had grown used to calling a lie-in. She didn’t register her phone pinging as she sat down to work for the day, leaving an unread text from Kara saying:

Lena, hi! I’m not giving up on you just yet ;) Call me optimistic but I think you’re cute. Tell me if I’ve got the wrong idea, but I wouldn’t mind taking you out for drinks one day? - K x


	3. Chapter 3

Kara flew through the window of her apartment which she always made sure to leave open when she went out on a late night mission posing as her alter ego. She was thankful for her light workload tonight, glad to see that her highest priority was simply a fire started by some faulty electrics in an empty office building. The blonde hadn’t wanted to deal with extra drama today after her conversation with Lena. Even after two weeks, her interactions with the girl were breaking her usually high spirits.

She stripped herself of her Supersuit, hanging it in her wardrobe behind the rest of her clothes so that it was hidden to anyone who wasn’t overtly looking for it. She tried everything to distract herself from checking her phone, knowing that there was no way she would have got a text from Lena after almost two weeks of receiving nothing at all. Instead she simply called in to her local pizza place to get her regular order and switched on her TV to play reruns of old shows that she definitely didn’t care enough to pay attention to. 

She pulled on a grey sweater and threw her hair into a bun on the top of her head. She pulled up a pair of little black shorts which were mostly masked by her oversized sweater, before she rooted around her apartment in search of her glasses. Sure, she had better eyesight than anyone else, but that generally proved to be more of a curse than a blessing, often leading to the simplest of things overwhelming her senses when she was without the thick-rimmed spectacles.

Just thinking of the word spectacle drew her mind back to Lena. Soulmates seemed such a strange term to her, especially with her kryptonian upbringing, but she couldn’t help but feel some kind of connection with Lena. The pair had spoken on two separate occasions, three if you count the brief texts they shared on the night of the assassination attempt, but something drew her to the shorter woman. She saw something in her that would have seemed crazy if she was not experiencing it. She had put it down to the fact that this was the first time she had been well and truly attracted to someone, I mean, how could she not be. Lena had the most captivating emerald eyes, complimented by her waist length, deep brown hair. Her eyebrows formed perfect arches, only bringing out her high cheekbones and chiseled jawline even further. Kara hated to sound as though she was objectifying a woman, and her attraction went well beyond her physical features, but it would be a crime for her to describe Lena and not mention her perfect hourglass figure.

Lena’s mind seemed to be something more powerful than Kara could comprehend, and she was from another planet altogether. She had been watching L-Corp grow as of the recent weeks and had seen their scientific research take a turn in a direction that only a genius would have seen to be possible. She was sure that Lena had so much to offer that she was just too afraid to make known to the world, and Kara was the one person who wanted to know about her more than anyone. 

She was broken from her thoughts when the doorbell rang. She got up to answer it with her blanket secured tightly around her shoulders, mimicking her cape, her blue slippers scuffing almost inaudibly against the hardwood of the apartment floors. She smiled politely at the pizza delivery woman before handing over the payment and tip in exchange for the three pizza boxes. Nothing calmed her nerves after a long night of flying like an overload of carbs. She couldn't help her mind drifting to the fact that had she been with Lena, she would have had to order a salad to satisfy the shorter woman. At least that’s what she thought? Then again, she was basing her assumptions on the one lunch that she had spent with the woman. 

She decided enough was enough when it came to her fantasies involving the brunette and finally gave in to the devil in her head who was begging her to check her phone. No text from Lena, and she was giving up. She didn’t deserve to be this ‘on edge’ every time that she got a notification, she wanted to either be happy, or find the strength to get over whatever her obsession was with the other girl. She was far too old to deal with unrequited love. 

Much to her surprise, in the time that she had been away from her phone she’d received a text from Lena, amongst fifty texts from Nia who was detailing a fight she had had with Brainy. Kara made a mental note to call Nia after she had spoken to Lena, desperate to get herself filled in on the gossip with her close friend. 

Hey. I’m sorry for what happened before. I didn’t want to be rude (and I know it’s no excuse) but I was under a lot of stress with work and motherhood etc. I didn’t mean to keep you in the dark for so long. - L x

Kara squealed internally. Lena wasn’t returning her text for the first time ever, she was the one who was initiating conversation. She felt the adrenaline burst through her body to the point where she had to forcibly stop herself from floating off of the couch as she hastily typed her reply. 

No need to be sorry at all, how are things with you? - K x

She was proud of that response. Not too pressing, but it was enough to spark conversation. It took Kara by surprise yet again when she saw Lena was typing. Her excitement was instantly replaced with confusion as she processed the idea that the single mother, who was the CEO of a billion dollar company and overwhelmed with work, was up at one in the morning and texting her. She was up at a ridiculous time texting simple old Kara Danvers. Kara Danvers who was known to the world as merely a social worker, Lena wasn’t up late to talk to Supergirl, she was up late to talk to Kara and Kara’s heart fluttered at the thought of it. 

About as well as can be imagined, been up all night with Annie… actually hoping you could offer some advice? - L x

Advice, is this between friends or as her social worker? Either way I’m happy to help. - K x

Annie’s having a really hard time, keeps talking about the bomb in the cafe. I know I didn’t talk to you about it before but I didn’t know how much of an issue it would be. Any advice? - L x

Oh gosh that’s terrible. Attention and reassurance help a lot if you think this is simply some unsolved anxiety, anything more could be worth seeing a therapist about. I could meet you both for lunch and I could see what I think about it? - K x 

You’d do that? - L x 

Anything for a friend :) Saturday, Noonans: 12pm? - K x 

That should work for us. Thank you again. - L x

Lena laid in bed, her daughter sadly pressed to her chest after what could only be described as her millionth meltdown of the day. Lena would normally find herself frustrated with the toddler’s antics but she couldn’t help but feel sorry for the girl who was so terrified of every unexpected noise that had happened around them. It had come to the point where Lena was having to take Annie to work, rather than leave her in daycare. As thankful as she was for Kara’s help, she did feel guilty for calling in a favour with the girl without engaging in any real conversation, something that the blonde was seemingly desperate for, so she gave in, this time in order to help her little girl.

I never got the chance to ask before, how are you doing, Kara? - L x

Me? Busy with work, as always, but other than that I’m doing well. You’re up late? - K x

Like I said, Annie’s thrown one hell of a tantrum tonight… gave in and she’s sleeping in with me. You know the drill with kids, everything’s on their terms when you want to sleep, lol. - L x 

Actually, don’t have any children of my own… one day though, unless you put me off the idea first. - K x 

Just assumed that you would, a social worker without kids is something pretty much unheard of. - L x

Well, I just want to help. Speaking of, you should get some rest, feel free to talk to me whenever. Goodnight - K x

Thanks again, Goodnight Kara - L x

Lena put the phone down with an undeniable smile on her face. Kara was beautiful and sweet, an endearing combination for the CEO. Lunch meant nothing, she had to keep telling herself that. Lunch was to help Annie, not indulge any of her fantasies which had definitely crossed her mind on more than one occasion. She had to resist whatever this was. Friendship with Kara would be fine, beneficial even, but anything beyond that was strictly prohibited. She’d crossed her own lines too much already, each new line in the sand brought her closer and closer to being dragged out to sea and that was something that she wouldn’t let happen. She was too much of a dangerous person, and her daughter was far far too precious. 

On the other side of town, Kara had just text Nia to tell her to come over. The two girls were ready to spend the night gossipping over their crushes. As much as Kara loved her other friends and her sister, there was nobody else in National City who could gossip the same way that Nia could.

If Kara didn’t know she was a superhero, she would have been overwhelmed by the speed that Nia had made it to her apartment. She opened the door and let herself in before locking it again behind her. 

“Kar! I swear I would kill Briany if his twelfth level intellect ass didn’t have the ability to predict anything I was about to do.” Nia grunted as she flung herself next to Kara on the couch, opening one of the pizza boxes and helping herself to a slice.

“What’s he done wrong this time? If I’m being honest, I was too lazy to read through the novel you text to me.” Kara poked fun at her best friend, only dealing out what she knew she could take if she was in the other’s shoes.

“Rude! But he’s really pissing me off! He’s so extravagant… he read that twelve roses were romantic so he bought me twelve bunches of twelve roses.” Nia vented, angrily taking a bite from the crust before tossing it back into the box. 

“Okay, but this is no reason to abuse a pizza!” Kara smiled, trying to break the tension and Nia couldn’t help but laugh over her best friend’s love for food. “Seriously though, he’s just trying to be romantic… maybe you could tell him how you’re happy with a simple lifestyle?” She shrugged, trying to hold in her laugh as she saw Nia’s eyes widen in preparation for yet another lengthy rant.

“He reads me poems in bed at night… in bed! My superpowers involve dreaming and he fills my head with mindless drabbles about love or whatever they called ‘owning women’ back in the 1800s. It makes me sick… I can’t have a dream where I’m wearing clothes from any other era… I’ve stopped having dreams where I don't wear anything at all!”

“So this is about your sad sex life?” Kara choked on her bite of the food as she tried to suppress yet another bout of laughter.

“Like your’s is any better!” Nia fought back, shocked to see Kara’s quirked brow.

“Talk to Brainy, he might be… different in his methods, but he loves you and I’m sure he would do everything he could to be able to keep loving you.” Kara smiled and for the first time that evening, her smile was matched. 

“I guess.” Nia shrugged, turning her full attention to Kara who was smiling brightly at her phone. “Spill it Danvers, who are you texting?” 

“Oh it’s nobody.” She shrugged, biting her lip in an attempt to look innocent. 

“Is it William?” She gasped, going to snatch the phone which Kara pulled away in an instant. “Shit! You fell for William?”

“Ew god no! We have literally no chemistry. He’s a fine friend, sure, but he’s nothing more than a friend.” Kara stammered, blushing at the thought of the woman who was behind the screen. Miss Lena Luthor, the sister of her cousin’s sworn enemy. The beautiful single mother of a sweet little girl who was trying her absolute hardest to make the best out of a bad situation.

“If it’s not him, then who’s the lucky man?” Nia climbed rather ungracefully across the couch in excitement, knowing Kara couldn’t keep a secret like this for too long, especially from her best friend. 

“What if it isn’t a man…” Kara said barely above a whisper. 

“Kara Danvers.. A bisexual?” Nia gasped, silent for less than a moment before squealing and hugging Kara. 

“I guess, I don’t know, I don’t want to label things. I’m interested in who I’m interested in, the biggest issue is I don’t know if she’s interested in me too.” Kara pulled up her phone and showed Nia a photo of Lena. It was one she had pulled off the internet to look at rather selfishly in her own time. It was definitely a paparazzi shot of the woman merely two days ago walking from the office to her car. She was wearing a maroon pantsuit and her long hair was pulled into a slick ponytail. Her daughter was standing next to the car, simply one step ahead of her mother who was smiling brightly down at the two year old. Annie looked so small but so chubby in the photo, wearing a nightie which Lena had almost definitely changed her into whilst she was at the office. It seemed to Kara that she cared more for her daughter’s comfort than her public image, and that was the first of one of many traits which drew her apart from her brother. 

“A Luthor…” Nia almost crumbled at the sight of a woman. There were few people she could have been shown who would be worse than a Luthor.

“Well yes, but she’s different. I met her at work actually!” The blonde justified herself, wiping her sweaty palms down her sweater, flustered when merely talking about her crush. 

“You met a Luthor… in court? You really think she’s different… sounds a lot like Lex to me.” Nia raised her eyebrows and her best friend snatched her phone back angrily.

“She was there fighting for custody for Annie, if you must know. Almost got killed by her brother’s assassins on the way home. She isn’t like him, and I’m meeting her for lunch on saturday, no matter what you say.” She stood up from the couch and went to make her way to her room before Nia stopped her, urging her to sit down again.

“I’m sorry for not trusting your judgment, but you know how it must sound, a Super being in love with a Luthor.” Nia shrugged. “Tell me about her, Kar.” 

That’s how they found themselves for the next three hours. Kara slowly made her way through all of the food that she had ordered as she talked about every detail pertaining to Lena Luthor. It was a head to toe physical description before it turned into an in depth explanation detailing her ‘incredible personality’. Nia listened intently to her best friend pining over another girl, often interjecting with meaningless statements about how she shipped them together. 

They’d ended up falling asleep merely inches apart on the couch before springing apart first thing in the morning in favour of getting ready for work. Kara had made Nia promise not to tell anyone and to come over again on saturday morning so that she could help her get ready for lunch. It most definitely was not a date but that didn’t stop Kara from wanting to look her best. 

The rest of her week was rather mundane, simply going to work, coming home, going out as supergirl, coming home, going to sleep, and doing it all over again. She loved both of her jobs, she truly did, but that didn’t mean that her week didn’t drag on annoyingly when she had lunch with Lena to look forward to. She was tidying up from this week’s game night when she got another text from Lena, the first since they had made their plans. 

Hi! Lunch tomorrow, is it formal? Never been to Noonan’s before. - L x 

Kara thought it was an odd text, I mean, she worked just down the block from the cafe, a simple look through the window would have told her all that she needed to know. Nevertheless, Kara responded, not wanting to be one to pass up on a conversation with the woman she was sure that she was falling for.

Not at all, wear whatever you like :) - K x 

Thanks, I’ll see you then? - L x

Without a doubt - K x

Kara smiled so wide at their interaction that she swore she almost tore through her cheeks, surely it shouldn’t be possible for her to feel the way that she did. With the excitement bubbling in her belly, she almost couldn’t get to sleep. She wasn’t surprised that when she woke up, all she could remember from the night was a dream she had had which would be wholly inappropriate to discuss. She had a shower soon after she woke up and spent almost half an hour trying to choose what would be best for her to wear. A skirt was too much, especially in winter, the late November breeze wouldn’t make her chilly in the slightest but she had to keep up the act that she was human. She chose a pair of tight fitting jeans in the end after they received the approval from Nia. The dark blue pants were then paired with a cable knit, cream sweater and a long, matching scarf. Kara gave herself the once over in the mirror before sending a photograph to Nia. Despite not being able to make it to help Kara with her outfit, she replied to the text instantly, providing Kara with all the reassurance that she needed. 

After having satisfied herself with the way that she looked, she walked to the cafe. Oh how she wished that she was allowed to fly everywhere, it would be a real timesaver after all. Her twenty minute walk could be reduced to merely seconds if she didn’t have to hide her identity as Supergirl. She smiled as she approached Noonan’s, seeing the mother daughter duo already sat at a table through the glass wall. 

Kara checked her watch, realised she was three minutes late, and rushed over to the table they were sat together at. She couldn’t stop the apology spilling from her lips as she took the seat opposite the brunette. Her hands were clammy and she could feel her heart pumping heavily as she spoke. 

“Lena! Hi! I’m so sorry I’m late, must’ve mistimed when I left.” Kara stammered slightly, never really dealing well even when under the tiniest bit of pressure. It was almost funny to her that Supergirl was the most powerful woman in the city whilst Kara herself would be better described as an anxious mess. 

“Are you kidding?” Lena giggled a little and the sound was like music to her ears. “Kara, I’ve been here for three minutes, I’m hardly upset with you.” She handed over something wrapped in a paper bag, returning the favour for Kara buying her lunch the other day. She opened the grilled cheese and smiled gratefully, making a note to eat more when she got home so she could fill herself completely. 

“Thank you.” She smiled sincerely before turning her attention to the toddler. “And hello to you too, Miss Annalise… are you enjoying your… Lena is she having a salad as well?” Kara tried her hardest not to laugh, but the two year old was eating a wider range of foods than she was herself. 

“A healthy girl is a happy girl.” Lena shrugged. “We’re both vegan and there weren’t a lot of other choices.” She explained gently, it wasn’t a criticism, more of an observation. 

“I’ll remember that and check the menu for next time.” Kara beamed, reaching out towards Annie to shake her hand and say hello, not surprised when the girl seemed to shrink away and look towards her mommy for help. 

“It’s okay, baby girl, Kara’s our friend.” Lena promised Annalise, waving at Kara and encouraging her to do the same. Annie simply nodded and Lena shrugged, not wanting to force her out of her comfort zone if she wasn't ready. 

Lena gave Kara a sad smile before looking down at her daughter again. “She’s been like this a lot lately… I mean, you saw what she was like before when she was at the trial. Even in front of all of those people she wasn’t scared, and now she’s scared of everything.” 

“Has it been a change since… you know?” Kara referenced the attempt on her life, not wanting to necessarily say anything that Lena didn't want Annie to hear. 

“Yeah, she’s just so nervous now.” Lena sighed, setting Annie in her lap. Kara didn't want to feel this way but she felt her heart swell at how maternal Lena was. She knew exactly what Annie felt before Annie even knew that she was feeling that way and that was a trait that Kara had always admired in parents. Seeing it in Lena though brought out a whole new feeling entirely, a feeling that made her want to kiss Lena and reassure her that she was doing so well. She couldn’t though. That would be patronising and crossing a million and one lines. 

“It definitely seems like a reaction to what happened that day. From what you explained in the text I thought it could be PTSD,” Kara spoke gently, placing a reassuring hand on top of Lena’s as she let out a heart wrenching gasp. “But it seems to me like its prolonged anxiety. She should improve with lots of reassurance. I worked with a child a while ago who had similar symptoms and she was completely fine at her yearly check in, sometimes these kinds of things just take a while to be processed … I’m not a psychiatrist, but I have a bachelors in child psychology and I’ve seen a lot of cases, but feel free to get a second opinion.” 

Lena gave her the biggest smile she could muster, all of her thanks were spread across her face from ear to ear. “I trust your opinion, thank you.” She smiled, squeezing Annie into a close hug, giving Kara’s hand a tiny squeeze too. Sure, the action was small, but Kara felt her heart erupting, grateful she wasn’t capable of heart attacks as the feelings didn’t seem to subside. 

They spoke for a few minutes longer about Annalise before the girl finally spoke for herself, looking up from her spot cradled against Lena’s chest, she muttered a quiet hello to Kara. That was all Lena needed for her heart to start pounding against her chest. Something in her body changed when she watched Kara talk animatedly with her daughter, trying her best to make sense of the toddler nonsense that she was talking. Nothing could prepare her for the way that her heart would swell even larger when she heard Annie call her ‘Kawa’. 

“She’s so damn cute, Lena, I might have to take her home with me!” Kara joked, not noticing how three hours had passed in the company of the mother and daughter duo. 

“If you don’t mind being woken up at five a.m. religiously, she’s all yours!” Lena replied. She had a crush. There was no denying it. Nothing could rationalise how she managed to talk to Kara with such ease after only knowing her for less than a month, but she knew she never wanted to stop talking to her. In fact, she was sure she could talk to her for the rest of her life. 

They managed to keep speaking for another hour before parting with a brief shoulder touch that both women had prayed silently would turn into a hug. This time, unlike before, Lena promised to keep in contact with Kara as she picked up her sleepy daughter and held her close to her body, smiling as she fell asleep as they said their goodbyes.

“Thank you for buying lunch, are you sure I can't pay you back?” Kara asked, possibly for the millionth time that day. She was met again by Lena’s giggle, that intoxicating giggle that she wished she could hear every day. 

“There’s no point in having money if you can’t treat your friends.” Lena smiled as she turned to leave the cafe. The word felt so right yet so wrong as she spoke it. She and Kara were friends, right? I mean they were certainly more than acquaintances. It didn’t matter if Lena felt that there was more to them than just friends, she was so certain that Kara wouldn’t feel the same way that she felt ridiculous for even entertaining the idea in her own mind. 

Lena smiled throughout the evening as Annie spoke relentlessly about her day, Kara’s name slipping into conversation every so often like she was an old friend. Lena wanted so desperately to share this news with someone, the feeling of joy she got when she heard her daughter talk about Kara. When Annie was all tucked into bed after insisting her mother sang to her for the better part of an hour, she texted Sam.

Arias. I have a problem? News? Idk if it’s good or bad? Please reply ASAP - L

Tell me everything, Luthor, I’m all ears - S

I met a woman - L

TELL ME EVERYTHING!!!! - S

I met her for lunch today, it was meant to be just a friend thing. I don’t know, we’re barely even friends. But she’s SO pretty and kind. - L

The worst part is that she's SO good with Annie. Normally I don’t like other people because of Annie, but Anns seems to like her too, she spoke about her all evening. I don’t know what to do!? - L

Ask her out! What’s her name? - S

Kara… - L

The social worker? Shit Lee, you really choose weird people to be interested in. - S

She’s not weird - L

For a genius, you don’t know when something’s a joke - S

I don’t even know if she’s into girls, Sam, let alone me! Even if she was, I have to put Annie first, I can’t be the one who upsets my daughter. - L

Annie will be happy if you’re happy, I say you should shoot your shot ;) the offer for me to babysit still stands! - S

I love you - L

Lena didn’t want to carry on that conversation, she had courage which she knew would only be momentary. So what if she crossed another line with Kara, she’d crossed enough lines already to know that crossing them didn’t always mean things would end badly. 

Dinner this week? I’ll pay? - L x

Dinner? Annalise as well? - K x 

I was thinking just the two of us. - L x 

As friends. - L x

Because we’re just friends - L x 

Just getting dinner as friends y’know?!? - L x 

Lena knew her courage was too good to last. She looked like an idiot and she wished more than anything that she could delete her texts before Kara saw them, but it was already too late as she saw the three dots appear at the bottom of her screen just as she started to feel her eyelids become heavy with sleep. 

Dinner as friends sounds good, give me a time and place and I’ll be there - K x 

But she was already fast asleep by the time that the message had been delivered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all, I hope you're enjoying the story! I'm kind of making it up as I go along (you can probably tell) so I hope it's all making sense to you!   
> If you have any comments or suggestions, don't hesitate to let me know.  
> Thanks for reading, y'all, I'll try and get another chapter out ASAP since I'm still in quarantine.
> 
> Lu xo


	4. Chapter 4

Lena was tucked comfortably into bed the night before her Friday dinner with Kara. Dinner had pretty much become a weekly occurrence for the friends and it had been a friday night tradition for the two of them as Lena was content in knowing she could still spend her whole weekend with solely Annie after out. She could barely stop her eyes from wandering as they ate meals at a new restaurant each week. The locations were always carefully selected by Kara to ensure that there were always options that Lena could eat and enjoy. 

She rolled under the covers, loving how the crisp white sheets felt so protective around her body. Her bed was a place that felt sacred to Lena, it was where she could go to escape the world, no matter what else was going on around her. She was upset to realise that Annie’s bed didn’t serve quite the same purpose for the toddler as it did for her mother. 

The twenty-five year old was on the verge of being asleep when she heard the unmistakable sound of two tiny feet pattering up the hallway before there was a quiet knocking at the door. Being a mom was her absolute favourite thing on this planet, but sometimes she really missed having an uninterrupted eight hours of sleep. She sat herself up under the covers, resting her weight on her elbows as she saw the door swing open to reveal Annie in all her sleepy glory. Her thin brown hair was matted at the back of her head and her usually bright eyes were droopy and sleepy, she presented her mother with an unmistakable pout. 

“What’s up, bug?” Lena sighed, pulling the covers off of her freezing body, already missing her cocoon of quilts. 

“My mommy.” She held out her arms, desperate for reassurance. “Up!” She sleepily demanded and Lena obeyed in favour of stopping the impending tears from falling. 

“Are you not sleepy? Mommy’s super sleepy!” Lena let out an exaggerated yawn in the hopes that Annie would realise it was not the time for her to be awake. 

“Bad tummy.” Annie frowned, an arm crossed over her stomach. She was clinging to a stuffed hippo which she insisted was her favourite toy, despite having many other, prettier toys. Her other hand was toying with her mommy’s hair, tugging at it lightly as a means of comfort. 

Lena let out a heavy sigh and pressed the back of her hand to Annie’s forehead which was hot to the touch. The nearly-three-year-old had been going to daycare four days a week recently whilst her mom was in the office and she had obviously picked up a bug from one of her new friends. Lena almost scoffed, knowing that daycare was a breeding ground for viruses and she hated the idea of sending her precious baby into that. She knew it was important though, she knew she had to get immunity from somewhere or she’d just end up getting sick when she got older. 

“Mommy I feel bad!” Annie was on the verge of tears now, fidgeting slightly on Lena’s hip and sweating. Lena paced a little, trying her hardest to calm down the irritable toddler whilst trying to think of where she had put the tylenol.

“I know, bug, but you’ll feel good soon, I promise.” Lena sighed, taking Annie down to the kitchen where she was sure she had left the medicine. She sat her sweaty baby on the couch next to a blanket whilst she quickly sorted the medicine. Had she been a second earlier, she could have stopped the impending crisis, but she walked back into the room at the exact time Annie vomited all over herself. She let out an almighty sob after she had finished, thankfully missing the couch and simply covering herself and the blanket.

“Oh babe, mommy’s here.” She took Annie out of her messed clothes and carried her back to the bathroom so she could wash the remaining vomit from her hair. She quickly tossed the blanket and clothes in the washer and washed out Annie’s hair, expertly putting it in a tiny bun to avoid any other mishaps. After everything was clean again, she took her out to get her the tylenol that she had tried so hard to give her before the incident. She found the, thankfully clean, stuffed hippo and gave it back to her very poorly baby.

“Are you sleepy, baby?” Lena asked gently, cradling the infant who was in desperate need of close love and attention. 

“No, my belly feels bad.” She whimpered. “I’m hot.” Annie refused her clothes and Lena settled for a pullup and a blanket, knowing her body temperature was likely to fluctuate throughout the night. Being a scientist helped Lena to understand that her daughter’s symptoms were only temporary, but it didn’t stop her heart from breaking every time she could see her hurting. 

“Shall we watch a movie in the living room then?” Lena sighed tiredly, not having slept since five the previous morning. 

“Yes pease.” Annie shivered, prompting her mother to wrap her in a blanket. She made a quick stop in her own room to get her phone before she settled them both on the couch. It was a half-an-hour ordeal to get Annie to take the tylenol, the little girl absolutely despising the way it tasted, possibly thinking that swallowing the liquid was a fate worse than death. She finally got it into her system with the promise of a cookie after she’d swallowed it. Lena truly hated the idea of her toddler eating oreos at three in the morning, but no better idea presented itself, and she had to stick to her promise. 

They laid and watched Frozen, getting to the halfway point before they were, once again, presented with a bowlful of vomit. Lena worked quickly cleaning everything up again, glad to have caught it in a bowl rather than in a blanket this time. Within ten minutes, they were cosy and ready to finish their movie when Lena realised all the things she would have to cancel. That was the thing about being a mother, all of your plans were conditional. Anything could be interrupted at any point by any kind of child-related crisis. She emailed into work and daycare, before flicking through her contacts to let Kara know she wouldn’t be able to make it to their dinner that they had planned for the upcoming evening.

She didn’t mean to call Kara when Annie fell asleep against her at four in the morning. Actually, that was a lie, she meant to call Kara with every ounce of her being. She didn’t mean to wake Kara, something which was clear in the woman’s voice when she answered the call. 

“Lena?” She spoke groggily and Lena couldn’t help but imagine how Kara must look as she woke up in the mornings. Sure, they had started to call each other more frequently but neither of them had dared to call each other at a time like this. Their conversations were reserved for daytime and this was yet another line that was being crossed. Lena couldn’t remember the last time she cared about crossing a line, and she couldn’t imagine caring about crossing lines again when it came to Kara. 

“Hey…” Lena spoke sheepishly, sort of regretting dialling the number at such a ridiculous time.

“Is everything okay? Is that… are you watching Frozen?!” Kara almost laughed, but it was too soon after waking up to be laughing and Lena couldn’t blame her. 

“Yeah, sadly I am. You don’t know how much I hate this damn ice queen.” 

“So you woke me up to tell me about a Disney queen?” Kara chuckled, having woken up enough now to joke like she usually did with her friend. 

“I actually called to cancel our plans.” Lena sighed, instantly wanting to retract her statement and repeat it in a better way. She hadn’t meant to sound so indifferent on the matter. In reality, she felt heartbroken… well, maybe heartbroken was too extreme of a word to use, but she was definitely upset. 

“Oh.” Kara made the distant noise before instantly trying to cover her own sadness. “Oh yeah, yeah of course no worries.” She spoke without taking a breath, sort of jumbling her words together slightly in her sleepy haze. 

“I was looking forward to it.” Lena sighed heavily, giving no explanation for her strange behaviour, forgetting that Kara was unaware of her daughter’s sickness. 

“Lee, is everything okay? Do you need help at all?” Kara spoke quietly and that was when Lena realised how cryptic she was being. She was used to Lena pulling away, no explanation given, and she was terrified that it was happening again. Of course Kara would panic. Sweet, anxious but sweet, Kara was bound to worry over such an obscure cancellation of plans. Kara cared about her, it was a strange concept to grasp, but the brunette was slowly coming to terms with it. 

“Sorry, yeah I’m okay.” Lena reassured her and she could almost hear the anxiety leaving Kara’s body. “Annie’s got the flu, I think it’s the flu anyways, I have to stay home with her tomorrow… or today? I don’t know what day it is.” Lena admitted tiredly. She felt weirdly comforted by Kara’s presence on the other end of the line.

“Oh the poor girl.” Kara sighed. “Have you got anyone coming over to help? Have you let Sam know?” She asked, genuinely concerned for the two of them. 

“Sam’s taken Ruby away for a long weekend, I got them a trip to Disney for christmas.” Lena laughed, it had been her first year where she was able to get her an extravagant gift, and she fully intended to. Unfortunately for her, the trip coincided with her daughter’s violent sickness, the one day where she would have asked Sam for help. 

“Do you need help? Or are you doing okay?” She asked gently, not wanting Lena to feel inadequate but also not wanting her to feel overwhelmed. 

“I could do with some sleep, but other than that, I’m doing okay.” Lena let out another yawn which Kara mirrored as Lena felt Annie start to stir on her chest once again. She got a whole fifteen minutes to relax, and for that she was genuinely grateful. She couldn’t imagine how crap Annie must feel with her stomach acting up the way that it was.

“Mommy! I feel sicky and hurty!” Annie wailed, causing quite the commotion. Lena soothed her, holding out the bucket and a sippy cup for her to choose between. She was thankful to see the sippy cup taken, hopeful that they might have seen the end of her vomiting for the night. 

“It’s okay baby, the bugs in your belly will be all gone soon.” Lena hoped she wasn’t lying to the little girl, desperately praying that this was just some virus. “That’s my call to leave, sorry again, Kar.” Lena hung up quickly, not realising the nickname she had given her friend. It was a slip of the tongue that barely crossed her mind, she could barely imagine the idea that it had fully woken Kara up, causing the twenty-six-year-old to spring from her bed and dance around her room. 

Lena spent the up until midday tending to her irritable daughter before briefly considering the idea of locking herself in the bathroom to hide. She wouldn’t normally want to escape so badly, but that was before she realised how angry a sick toddler could get after they had thrown up on their favourite stuffed animal.

“I want Hippy now!” Annie screamed violently, shocking Lena. Sure she had heard tantrums before, but she’d never heard anything like this. This was a mixture of sickness, exhaustion and anger from Annie and as much as she was trying to be sympathetic, there was only so much sympathy she could give on such little sleep.

“Hippy had to go in the laundry, bug. How about we choose another toy to cuddle with today?” Lena suggested, pulling Annie into a fuzzy onesie since the girl had been complaining of the fact that she was now too cold.

It took upwards of fifteen minutes arguing with the two year old before they were interrupted by a few knocks at the door. Lena wasn’t expecting any guests, and Sam was out of town… she had no idea who it could be. She picked up Annie, who was still whining about her hippo being in the washing machine, and made her way to the front door. She wasn’t prepared to see Kara through the peephole with bags of shopping. It reminded her of the first time Kara came to her office for munch, she had been so extravagant and bought everything she could think of buying. 

“Hey” Kara smiled sheepishly as Lena opened the front door. She had never seen her look so exhausted. Her skin was completely free of make-up and ler shiny brown hair was in the messiest ponytail Kara had ever seen. The bags under her eyes were unmistakable and she was wearing grey sweats and a university sweatshirt, an outfit that she usually wouldn’t be caught dead in. Annie was on her hip, her arms wrapped tightly around her mother’s neck as she let out irritated whimpers, her little legs kicking Lena slightly as a way of begging for more attention. 

“Kara! I wasn't expecting you, sorry about all of this…” she gestured to herself, suddenly realising this was the least attractive she had ever looked. Kara didn’t share that opinion, though, she loved how relaxed Lena looked. Her clothes were comfortable, and that was a welcomed change to the pencil skirts and pantsuits that she normally saw her in… not that she didn’t enjoy those too. 

“Don’t apologise… I brought supplies, but I wasn’t sure what you wanted.” The blonde shrugged and Lena felt her heart grow with more love than she thought to be possible. 

“Do you want to come in for a minute? You don’t have to stay, I just want to get Anns settled.” Lena started to bounce Annalise on her hip, gesturing to the couch. Kara quickly agreed, following Lena through to the living room. The house was so much bigger than Kara could have imagined, the living room easily being the size of her whole apartment. 

“I want Hippy!” Annie screamed, seemingly still not over her tantrum from forty-five minutes ago.

“Maybe he’s done in the wash now… want mommy to go and see?” Lena asked and Annie nodded sadly, her chubby face contorted into a sad little pout. 

“I’ll sit with her for a minute if you need to do something.” Kara smiled and Annie didn't seem to protest so she quickly ran to the laundry room, grateful to see that the ugly stuffed hippo was finally clean. She went to run back downstairs but she couldn’t hear any signs of distress so she took a second, or ten…She sat on top of one of the counters and took a minute to breathe, instantly more grateful for Kara being here than she had ever been for anything else in her life.

“Look who I found!” Lena smiled animatedly, hoping her happiness could influence her daughter’s emotions.

“Hippy pease.” She held out her hands wearily for the stuffed toy, tucking it under her arm and promptly falling asleep as if it was the solution to all of her problems. Lena took a seat on the couch next to Kara and smiled nervously at her. 

“Thank you for all of this.” She sighed a deep sigh which instantly developed into a yawn. 

“I brought lunch.” Kara smiled weakly. “You haven’t eaten, have you?” Lena simply chuckled sadly in response, of course she hadn’t eaten. She had literally forgotten that she had needed to feed herself as she found herself wrapped up in the day’s antics. 

“Vegan pizza.” Kara handed her the box. “I won’t tell anyone that you didn’t have a salad.” She teased and settled further into the couch. “Mind if I stay for a little while? I could give you a break?” 

“You wouldn’t mind?”

“Not in the slightest.” Kara placed a hand on top of Lena’s in comfort, and if Lena wasn’t so tired, she’d be sure that her stomach would be full of butterflies. Instead, she relaxed into the feeling, tucking the blanket around herself a little bit tighter. That’s when she realised that she couldn’t fight the tiredness anymore and her eyes started to droop.

Kara flicked on the TV and watched reruns absentmindedly, she stayed on the couch next to Lena and her daughter when she felt a sudden weight on her shoulder. She looked down to see her friend, fast asleep and snoring slightly, her plump lips separated and her hair falling from the ponytail across the back of the couch. Kara looked at the girl in all her beauty and decided in that moment, she had to make a move. She couldn’t help but think how it must feel to kiss her… maybe she was wrong about everything, but that was a risk she was willing to take. After all, how often would she get presented with a woman like Lena. 

A few hours passed before either of the girls began to wake up. Annie opened her eyes wearily before leaning over to wake up her mom. She was stopped by Kara who climbed out from underneath Lena in order to pick her up. 

“What’s up, munchkin?” Kara smiled. Not wanting to overstep, but at the same time, desperate for Lena to get some rest. 

“I’m hungwy” She mumbled, adorably mispronouncing the word. 

“Hm, have you eaten yet today?” Kara asked, making her way through to the kitchen, starting to look through the cupboards before finding a singular kids ready meal. 

“No, I had an icky tummy.” Annie grumbled, collecting Kara’s shirt in her tiny fists and playing with it. The woman smiled so happily at the little girl, even when Annie was sleep deprived and sick, she was still the cutest girl she had ever seen, practically just a tiny version of her mother.

“Oh, that doesn’t sound like much fun, does it?” Kara shrugged, checking the heat of the meal before placing it on the high chair table and sitting Annie in front of it. It took a few minutes for her to navigate her way around the kitchen and find a spoon for the toddler to use, and by the time she presented her with the cutlery, the food was cool enough to be eaten.

“Here you go, Annalise.” The blonde beamed, adjusting her glasses awkwardly when Annie didn’t seem to be the slightest bit impressed with the food in front of her. “Do you not like it?” She asked, getting more nervous that the baby was getting nauseous again.

“Mommy feed me.” She pointed to the spoon in Kara’s hand and she gasped, taking the statement entirely the wrong way, thinking that Annie had referred to her as her mother. Not meaning to discredit the smart toddler, but it was almost impossible to think Kara was like Lena, the women were polar opposites in appearance.

Just as Kara was about to protest the wrong use of the name, she heard Lena clearing her throat behind her, making her presence known. “She meant that I usually feed her, Kar. She wants you to feed her with the spoon.” Lena laughed lightly, moving through the kitchen, in absolute bliss with the completely unexpected, yet comfortably domestic situation. “I can do it if you don’t want to.” Lena went to make her way over before she was stopped in her tracks by Kara’s voice.

“No no, Little Miss Annalise and I have this all under control.” Kara beamed, giving the toddler a satisfied nod. The tiny brunette returned the nod in the cutest way imaginable, clearly feeling a million times better than she had been earlier. 

“You want a coffee?” Lena asked and Kara nodded but didn’t respond. Adorably, she was focussing all of her attention on Annie who was happily chewing away at the meal that Lena would never give her ordinarily. She supposed that today could be a cheat day, even as a health freak, she realised that vegetables didn’t necessarily have to be a part of every meal that they ate. There was also no way in the world that Kara could be faulted for what she had done to help, in fact, there was no way in the world that she could be thanked enough for giving Lena those few precious hours of sleep.

The women spent a while longer sipping at coffees and making small talk as Annie continued to nap on the other side of the couch, her stuffed hippo still held tightly to her chest. Kara had spent the whole time testing the waters, awkwardly trying to hint at Lena’s sexuality in order to make sure that any moves that she made towards the woman would not be made in bad taste. And that’s how they got onto the topic of Annie’s father.

“He’s never been in her life, he never cared.” Lena sighed, the breath filled with hatred towards the man.

“If you don’t mind me asking, how did you get pregnant with a man that you hate this much?” Kara chuckled a bit and Lena retracted herself a little, seemingly trying to figure out the best way to answer the question without giving away too much about herself. Kara was used to this trait in her friend, and she decided it to be best to give her her space. After all, if Kara was hiding the secret of being Supergirl, Lena could hide things from her too until she felt comfortable enough to share them.

“We used to be good friends, Andrew and I.” Lena started and hesitated almost as soon as she did so, taking a long drink from her mug of black coffee. “We ended up together… physically… I don’t know, he was drunk, I guess I was drunk too? I don’t remember a lot.” Lena shrugged it off, she didn’t want to run away from Kara, but at the same time, it was too much truth to be revealing all at once. 

“Not into him at all then?” Kara tried to lighten the mood and the brunette loved how she was able to make a conversation as dark as this feel so lighthearted once again. 

“Not into men at all, actually!” Lena shrugged, desperate for her coming out to be okay with Kara. Every time she had come out before, with Sam as the sole exception, she had been faced with rejection. Her mom, her dad, her brother, friends and even employers had all turned their back on the woman for expressing herself for who she truly was and the thought of it made the hairs on the back of Lena’s neck stand on end. 

“Lee, you don’t have to be nervous to tell me things like this. We’re friends, okay?” Kara reached over and held her hand. It took every bit of willpower that Lena had to not lean over and kiss Kara, it was the only thing on her mind as her eyes flitted between Kara’s steely blue orbs and her seemingly soft, pink lips. “You can’t be nervous to come out to me! I’m bi, my sister’s gay, trust me, the house was basically like a pride parade when I was growing up!” 

Normally, Lena would be jealous of people who had such loving parents, but she couldn’t help feeling grateful that Kara was loved. She knew that she was adopted as a teenager and Lena could only imagine how hard that must have been for her. It made her so happy to hear Kara reel off stories about her later childhood with Alex, who was a woman that Lena was terrified to meet.

She shook herself from her thoughts about Kara and turned her attention back to the television, their hands still held tightly between them, neither woman daring enough to do anything more or less. It wasn’t until Annie’s bedtime that either of the women moved. Her mommy quickly took her to bed and Kara could just about hear Lena singing her daughter a lullaby as she listened out for her friend coming back downstairs. The footsteps came soon after the song ended and Kara quickly, and awkwardly, tried to hide the fact that she had been using her superpowers to listen in. 

Lena found it to be truly endearing to see Kara blushing in front of the door as she descended the flight of stairs. The blonde smiled sheepishly and Lena blushed too as she felt herself being watched. She was sure now, more than ever that what she felt for Kara was too far beyond friendship to turn back. Lena realised in that moment the same thing that Kara had realised earlier: she had to make a move.

“I can’t thank you enough for helping out today… you really did save me.” Lena felt herself wanting to giggle, so she let herself giggle, loving the way that Kara seemed to let her feel all of her emotions, even the ones that made her feel like a teenager again. Especially the ones that made her feel like a teenager again. 

“It was my pleasure, Annie’s a sweet girl.” Kara beamed, picking her purse up off of the floor and slinging it over her arm. Come on, Danvers! It’s now or never her brain practically screamed and she felt herself speaking before she could stop it. It was quite possibly the cheesiest thing she had ever said. “She’s cute, like her mommy.”

It was Lena’s turn to feel flustered this time. Was Kara really flirting with her. The tall, toned, blonde woman who she had thought to be miles out of her league… was flirting with her? “You’re too kind, really. If anyone here deserves a compliment, it should be you! I mean, you’re just perfect!” Lena gushed, realising it was too much only after she heard it come out of her own mouth.

“Perfect, huh?” Kara smirked and Lena confidently stood her ground. Confrontation was her strong suit, if she took the power now, she could be the one to make something of this relationship, finally feel something romantically. Maybe it was a decision made on too much sudden confidence, maybe not, but it felt like exactly the right thing to do as she took a step closer to Kara. 

“I’ve never met anyone like you before.” The shorter brunette started, her flirting was in full force, a skill she was only ever used to using on girls back in bars when she went to university. She reached a hand up slowly, noticing that Kara didn’t make any move to repel her as she gently pressed it against her cheek. “Someone this kind and beautiful.”

That’s all it took for Kara to lose any self control that she had holding her back from Lena. She let both of her hands find their way into her friend’s hair - which was just as soft as it looked - as she pulled their faces closer together. They stayed there for a while, so close that Lena could feel the hot breath against her lips before she spoke again. 

“Just kiss me already, Kara.” She took one last look between the bluest eyes and pinkest lips before she felt Kara against her, their faces pressing together. The kiss lasted for merely a few seconds before Lena pulled away, leaving them both breathless. They stood in silence, just looking at each other before a cry made its way through the baby monitor on the table. 

“How about we reschedule dinner? I’ll pick you up next friday at seven?” Kara asked, trying to seem smooth but just sounding giddy. 

“That sounds perfect, Kar.” Lena pressed a quick peck to her lips before taking a step backwards, knowing she should make her way up to Annie who had more than likely just dropped her teddy, or accidentally uncovered her feet in her sleep.

“Go be a mom, I’ll call you?” Kara asked, reluctantly taking a step outside into the freezing january air. 

“I’ll talk to you later.” Lena sighed, closing the door and making her way to her daughter. She sorted out the minor inconvenience of Annie dropping her hippo - as expected - and made her way to her bed where there was already a text waiting from her friend? Her best friend? Her girlfriend? She didn’t know, but she was happy. 

Dinner this week is formal, my treat. Thank you for the perfect evening <3 - K xox

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi y'all, I wrote this at 1am and didn't have much time to check over it so I hope it's okay.  
> I have a few things planned for upcoming chapters which I'm excited for.  
> Thank you for reading, as always, comments, suggestions & Kudos are welcomed,
> 
> Lu xox


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope yall enjoy, this is the calm before the storm with the fluff

Lena was still smiling when she woke up, moving quickly out of bed in order to shower before Annie woke herself up with the sunrise. Lena spent a considerable amount of time calling Kara last night, ever since the kiss, the women had got a lot closer. She was completely unaware of when she fell asleep, all she knew was that the phone was still connected to Kara when she did so. She made a note to check her phone, finding it strange that she had something to check for now, rather than just to rant to Sam. She got herself ready for work before she ventured into her daughter’s bedroom, slowly waking her from her sleep.

“Good morning, sleepy head!” She scooped her up and smiled at how she groggily clung to her mommy’s work blouse. “What do you want to wear to daycare?” She asked her, before she picked out the clothes. She dressed Annie in a pair of leggings and a soft, red jumper that came down to her knees. Lena couldn’t get over how cute she looked, taking a photo and sending it off to Sam as she took Annie through to the kitchen for breakfast. She got her a bowl of cheerios and poured almond milk over it as she managed to convince Annie to feed herself. 

“Mommy! Can I bring Hippy?” She asked, kicking her little legs at the table and spitting tiny pieces of her cereal across the room. 

“Of course you can, Anns.” She let her do what she wanted when she went to daycare, already feeling guilty about having to send her there whilst she worked and not wanting to upset her by saying no. “And we don't talk with our mouths full, we wait until we are done chewing.” Lena chastised her gently and Annie simply nodded before repeating the same mistake when she spoke again seconds later. 

“Sammie is picking you up today, pickle.” Lena reminded her, tying the laces on her tiny trainers and picking up both of their bags. Annie’s was significantly lighter, only having her hippo and some spare diapers in it, whilst Lena’s was filled to the brim with notepads, laptops, work phones, anything you could possibly need in an office. 

“And I’m playing with Rue!” Annie announced, happily waiting to be strapped into her car seat. Ruby and Annie were two years apart in age but had the bond of close cousins. Ruby would take Annie under her wing in order to make sure she knew how to do all of the things that her and her five year old friends could do. As much as Lena loved how close they were, she hated how grown up Annie always seemed when she was around Ruby. 

“I’m sure you’ll have a great time! I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning, okay pumpkin?!” She picked her out of the car when they reached her daycare and gave her a huge hug, peppering her chubby cheeks with kisses. Annie was excited as ever to go to daycare, bouncing happily as they walked into the mock classroom. Lena waited for a few moments at the door in order to check that Annie was settled in before she blew her one last kiss and left for work.

“I love you, Annie.”

“Love you, mommy.”

She got into her office at 8am, easily settling into her daily routine of fixing the finances in order to make the upcoming deal that she was making. She had just deleted the last file as she felt a wave of relief wash over her, everything was completed. The company was well and truly hers. Sure, she had been the owner of L-Corp for nearly four months now, but those four months had been used solely to fix the mistakes of Lex. 

She typed her way through six more documents, each one detailing the product that she had been covertly working on in her own time for the past year and a half. If the deal went fully according to plan tomorrow, she would have three billion to use to bring her invention to life, and the idea of that made her weak at the knees. At twenty-five, she was ready to change the world and she was lucky enough to have the means and the brains to do so. She was typing so intently about her research that she didn’t notice her door open and her friend walked in.

Kara watched her as she obviously typed away, her forehead wrinkling slightly with stress, but her mouth and eyes were smiling gleefully. She let her eyes trail over Lena’s body, smiling herself as she took in the outfit. As always with Lena, the look was professional, but attractive, and the green pantsuit was no exception. Kara could almost bet that it cost more than her apartment… but it was worth the money for the way that it made Lena look. She was baffled as to how Lena always managed to look gorgeous, even last week with little-to-no sleep and toddler vomit on her shirt, Kara couldn’t resist kissing her.

“You look happy.” Kara broke the silence, making her way to the couch with a salad for Lena and a burger for herself. It was a lunch routine that they had fallen into so easily. Most days, Kara was able to work her cases from home, it was only when she had to go to court that she didn’t bring the brunette her lunch. Those were the days that Lena forgot to eat. 

“You have no idea.” She looked up from her computer, hastily removing her glasses and going to join Kara on the couch, offering a thankful smile for bringing her lunch.

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” She smiled, letting her hand linger against Lena’s when she was handed a glass of water. 

“Promise not to tell anyone?”

“Promise.”

“I’m getting three billion dollars tomorrow.” Lena couldn’t help but beam as she heard the words coming out of her mouth for the first time and Kara’s heart practically stopped at the mention of the money. “For a year and a half, I’ve been developing this technology to help blind people use their phones and I’m finally meant to be getting the funding I need to send it out for a demo and show it to the public.”

“You are the most impressive woman I know, Luthor.” Kara sat opposite her, completely gobsmacked. “I know we already have plans tonight… but can we make it something special? I’m so proud of you!” She opened her arms to the shorter woman who gratefully fell against her.

“What kind of thing are you thinking?” Lena asked, shuddering when Kara brushed her lips against her hairline. 

“Leave work early, I’ll book us somewhere special for dinner.” Kara let her hands rest on Lena’s hips as she held her closely.

“How are you so perfect all the time. It’s exhausting.” Lena chuckled happily. This was all so new for her to be this happy with some woman she barely knew. I mean, sure Kara was her friend before all of this, but they had only known each other for four months! She had never moved this quickly before… but then again, she had never felt herself fall this hard before either.

She was broken from her thoughts by Kara’s phone vibrating relentlessly against the couch, capturing the attention of both of the women. Lena briefly saw the notifications, registering that they were all from Kara’s sister. The blonde looked to Lena sheepishly, holding her phone up as if she was asking permission to leave. 

“Is everything okay?” Lena asked. She knew she should move but the way she was tucked up against Kara’s chest was just too damn comfortable. 

“I have to cut this short…” Kara groaned, standing up at the same time that Lena did. “I’ll be back here at five.” Kara nodded and Lena felt a blush creep up her cheeks as the butterflies swarmed in her stomach. Kara Danvers would be the death of her.

“Before you go.” Lena reached out and grabbed Kara’s wrist. With her Kryptonian strength, Kara was barely impacted by the feeling of being pulled back but she relented anyway, finding herself face to face with Lena for the second time that week. It was through muscle memory that their lips found each other once again, sharing a brief moment before Kara broke away, promising to be back to talk to Lena later and take her to dinner. 

She flew past Lena’s window, stopping for a brief moment to watch her work before speeding to the other side of the city. The Supergirl situation was nothing too strenuous, just a shootout on the street which Kara had to use her body to defend against before the wrongdoers were arrested by her sister. They both got into the government issued van and drove back to the DEO, Kara always saying that she didn’t want to fly if she didn’t have to, not wanting to risk a solar flare for no reason. It took a little bit of self manipulation for her to decide that visiting Lena was a worthy enough situation for her powers. 

“So, wanna come out with me and Kells tonight?” Alex asked after the aliens and their weapons had been successfully secured by the government agents. Kara felt herself going crimson from head to toe, and before she could even process that it was happening, she let out an almighty giggle.

“Fuck, Kara, what are you hiding?!” Alex instantly started her interrogation. Kara was possibly the only person on the face of the earth who didn't find her sister, who was consistently clad in leather, to be intimidating. 

“Nothing! I just have plans.” She shrugged off the question before looking down to check her phone. Kara Danvers who hated being on her phone when she was with people was taking time away from her favourite person in order to use her phone? Something was going on, and Alex knew exactly what it was.

“Who is it?” Alex raised her brow in the way that Kara had seen her do so many times before.

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t act dumb.”

“I’m not acting dumb.”

“Oh my god, is it William?!” Alex’s jaw dropped practically to the floor.

“Disgusting, no! I don’t know why people keep trying to force the two of us together… it’s not even like we have chemistry!” Kara grimaced. She barely knew the man, let alone found him attractive. 

“Okay, calm down, but you have to tell me everything! You were the first person I told about Kelly.” Alex tried to guilt her sister into saying something which worked like a charm. 

“Don’t judge me…” 

“I would never… unless they don’t live on this planet, because even I think that’s a bit extreme.” Alex’s hard glare softened and she held out her hand for Kara to hold. It was a simple gesture but it helped Kara to open up to her, feeling reassured by her presence. 

“It’s Lena.”

“As in Luthor?” Alex threw her hand down angrily, and whilst she was the girl of steel, it didn't mean that her heart was indestructible as well. 

“As in L-Corp.” Kara tried to point out one of the many ways that Lena had tried to distance herself from Lex’s crimes, but it fell on deaf ears as Alex paced so angrily that she wouldn’t be surprised if she burned through the floors. 

“As in, her brother is a serial killer. Her family are notorious for hating Kryptonians, her mother who runs an organisation to kill aliens? That girl?” Alex spat, loosening her gun from where it was being held in her holster. “You’ve got a fucking death wish, Zor-El.” Alex snapped, rubbing her temples.

“She’s not like her family… she has a daughter, Al.” Kara tried to calm her, guiltily bringing Annie into the argument. 

“You seem to forget that Lillian had a daughter too… the daughter that you’re trying to sleep with.” 

“So, let me get this clear: you still get to make my decisions for me, even now I’m an adult?” Kara spat and Alex took a step back. She was usually a puppy, but today she resembled more of a lion, forcing her to put her glasses back on in order to avoid setting an angry fire with her eyes. “She’s not like her family.”

“That’s not what I’m trying to do, Kar, I’m just so scared you’ll get hurt. You saw how much Lex hurt Kal-El, and it would kill me if anything like that happened to you.” She opened her arms again and Kara couldn’t resist hugging her sister. They never stayed mad at each other for long. “Go on that date, but it anything happens, call me and I will not hesitate to murder her.”

“I feel like you want me to say thank you for this, but you just threatened to kill my date.” Kara chuckled, appreciating her sister’s antics.

“All’s fair in love and war, Kara.” She hugged her close before letting her go to get ready for her date.

Kara decided to bite the bullet and wear her hair down, she would keep her glasses on, but what harm could it do her to look slightly more like Supergirl. She thought about it for a minute, making the decision that should their relationship be more than a fling, she would tell Lena of her secret identity as the superhero. She chose an outfit after almost forty minutes of trying, once again waiting for Nia’s approval before she solidified her decision. She wore a dark pink dress that stopped mid-thigh, flaring out at her waist and showcasing both her curves and her extremely toned abs. She knew Lena wouldn’t be able to change after work and, if she was being honest, she didn’t min d. Kara would do a lot of things to see her in that pantsuit again.

Four-forty-five the clock read as she walked into the lobby at L-Corp, showing Jess the bunch of flowers. The two women discussed Lena for a brief moment whilst Kara waited for her elevator, she was practically gushing over Lena the whole time. She tapped her feet as she got into the elevator, equal parts anxious and excited as she knocked twice on her office door and entered.

“Kara, wow.” Was all that Lena managed to articulate, taking in her muscular arms, all the way down to her muscular legs. “You look absolutely incredible.” She quickly shut off her computer, willing the program to close faster than it was, eventually just giving up and deciding she could close it all off tomorrow. 

Kara didn’t fail to notice how Lena had undone some of the buttons of her white shirt, leaving slightly more cleavage on show than she usually would if she was at work. “You look beautiful, Lee.” Kara sat herself on the edge of Lena’s desk and handed her the flowers, waiting for her to be ready to leave. 

“You saw me earlier.” Lena beamed, sniffing the flowers and setting them in the vase on the edge of her desk.

“You’re still beautiful.” Kara shrugged, pushing her glasses up her nose nervously as she took in all of the beauty that was Lena.

“Where did you book for dinner?” Lena asked, standing from her chair and picking up her bag and holding out a hand for Kara to hold. She was grateful when she felt the warm fingers intertwine with her own, the small move easing her nerves slightly. 

“It’s a surprise, come on.” She tugged on Lena’s hand and they walked close to one another, chatting idly as they went down the street. They reached Lena’s favourite restaurant which was just three blocks from her office. Kara stopped and held the door open for her friend before she walked through it herself. 

“You got us a reservation?” Lena gasped, the point still stood that she had never met anyone else in the world who cared about her as fiercely as Kara did. “How did you even manage this, they're booked up for months!” Lena gushed, pulling Kara into a tight hug.

“I have my methods.” Kara smirked, not revealing that her methods involved flying here as Supergirl and telling the owner herself how her ‘best friend Kara’ needed a booking for that evening. She wasn’t a fan of using her powers for her own gain, but technically, this was for Lena’s good so she wasn’t being selfish. 

They made their way to their table and the blonde instantly ordered Lena’s favourite red wine to come, along with their preferred meals. Lena thanked her profusely but Kara simply shrugged it off, wanting to give the CEO a completely care free night.

“How was your morning? How’s Annie?” Kara asked, sipping the wine from her own glass. That question was the killer for Lena. She wasn’t asked about her job, or her money, or her brother, or her trauma. She was asked about her little girl, and Kara genuinely seemed interested in the answer.

“It was actually really relaxed today, Annie was the absolute sweetest girl this morning. She was chattier than normal, it was so cute.” Lena gushed and that was Kara’s turn to swoon. Oh how she wished that she would be able to wake up alongside Lena and witness the tiny family in their domestic situations. 

“She’s a really lovely little girl. Does anyone ever tell you that the two of you look identical?” Kara leaned across the table as she spoke, a silent way of asking for Lena’s hand to hold.

“I see what you mean… but I don’t necessarily talk to a lot of people.” Lena shrugged awkwardly, desperate to change the subject soon after she spoke. “I know we said no phones tonight, but I took a photo of her this morning before daycare and she was literally the cutest thing ever.” Lena reached into her bag and Kara let her, smiling when she saw the way Lena’s eyes softened further at the sight of her daughter. Kara had to agree that the photo was damn right adorable. She had her dark hair down to her shoulders, her stuffed hippo secured tightly under her arm and the sweetest little smile ever as she looked up at her mommy. 

“You made a pretty incredible kid.” Kara smiled, not commenting on the use of Lena’s phone over dinner. She knew how much of a big deal it was for the CEO to let anyone into her own life, let alone into Annie’s life, and she was so grateful to be one of the only people who was trusted to be around her. 

“What about you? How did things go after you left me?” Lena faked hurt for being abandoned over lunch and her date giggled at the feigned anger behind the question. She was beginning to love the turn that their relationship had taken since the kiss. It was as if any remaining tension had dissipated and all that remained was trust and happiness. Lena caught herself thinking for the first time about how she could see this lasting.

“Sister emergency.” Kara giggled, moving her hair from her face. Lena saw everything, all the way from her slightly messy darker roots, to the crinkle, all the way to her absolutely adorable smile. She was sure Kara had broken so many hearts without even realising, just by not picking up on flirting. 

“Care to explain any further?” Lena smirked, unable to avoid the pang of jealousy deep in her gut. She missed having a brother who loved her. She wanted Lex to be able to text her when he wanted advice, rather than have him calling on her to tell her how she was ruining his legacy and he would ‘make sure’ that she wouldn’t be around much longer to keep destroying him. God she hated her family, but that didn’t mean that she couldn’t miss the times when Lex was her best friend. 

“She wanted to talk through some arrests she made at work, she wanted my view about their cases.” Kara shrugged as if asking your sibling for help was the most natural thing in the world. It probably was natural for most people. 

“I used to be that close with Lex.” Lena spoke barely above a whisper, hating the way that his name was laced with poison as it slipped off her tongue. Instead of Kara fleeing, she felt the grip on her hand tighten with encouragement to keep talking. “We were best friends when the Luthors adopted me.”

“Wait! You’re adopted too?” Kara gasped, Lena never spoke about her family aside from Annalise, Sam and Ruby. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, it just never crossed my mind.”

“No, don’t worry about it. But I am offended that you thought I had that ghastly balding gene.” She laughed but Kara saw right through it, knowing how much it hurt to talk about a past life, it must be even harder when life didn’t ever seem to get any better. 

“What’s your story then?”

“Mum died when I was four, then the Luthors flew me over to America by myself, I was brought into the house to keep Lex company. Mother never cared much for me and father died when I was in my teens. I went off to boarding school when Lex started to lose his mind, I thought it was so that he could get help but it was just so that he and mother could plot world domination in peace.” 

“You shocked me, Lee. You’re truly the strongest woman I know.” She brought her hand to her lips, gently kissing it and leaving behind the faint mark of her lip gloss. “You’re not American?” She asked, rubbing circles on her hand as she placed her credit card on the table when the bill was brought over. 

“Irish blood.” Lena beamed, she looked so proud of her heritage. “Originally from Bray. Before I got the company, the plan was actually to leave the city and raise Annie there.” 

“And L-Corp stopped you from doing that?” Kara asked and Lena shrugged, playing a little with the pendant that hung around her neck. It became clear to her date that it was a nervous trait of the woman.

“Amongst other things… namely, Kara Danvers.” She stood from the table after tipping their waiter, barely batting an eyelid as she placed the hundred dollar bill under a glass on the table as a thank you to the staff. 

“You’re an absolute flirt, you know that, babe?” 

“Babe, huh?” Lena smirked and giggled a little drunkenly as Kara flushed the deepest red she had ever seen. “How about we hit up a bar and keep with this ‘getting to know each other’ shit.” Lena pressed herself into her date’s side and Kara couldn’t help but agree to spending more time with her. Lena was stumbling slightly as they walked, the alcohol reaching her brain faster than she could process. She was too tipsy to realise Kara wasn’t affected at all by the amount that they had had to drink. They walked in a comfortable silence down the street before coming to a stop to sit on a bench in a nearby park in order for Lena to answer the facetime call she was receiving from Sam. Kara insisted she took it, putting her arm around her as she clicked to answer. 

“Oh! Hey there, bug. It’s past your bedtime!” Kara laughed at Lena who seemingly sobered up instantly at the sight of her daughter. 

“Mommy, I’m sleepy.” Annie mumbled, her head resting against Sam’s chest. 

“We thought we should give mommy a little call so that we could get all cozy for bed, right, little miss?” Sam combed gently through Annie’s hair with her fingers and Lena couldn’t stop her heart from melting as she watched her toddler’s eyelids droop sleepily. 

“You look really cozy with Sammie. Just close your eyes, sweet pea, and I’ll be there for cuddles first thing when you wake up.” Lena spoke and felt Kara’s grip tighten around her shoulder.

“Love you. Mommy.” She yawned, finding it seemingly impossible to fight off sleep at barely eight o’clock. The joy of being a toddler. 

“I love you to the ends of the earth, baby girl.” Lena made a bunch of kissing noises before the camera panned up to show Sam frowning playfully. 

“What about me? I’m babysitting her so you can get laid!” Sam chuckled, whispering the last part so that Annie didn’t hear. 

“I love you too, Samantha.” Lena laughed. It was a wholehearted belly laugh and Kara couldn’t help but laugh with her, making her presence known. “Thank you for embarrassing me though.” Lena scowled and panned the camera to Kara.

Sam gasped loudly, rambling her apologies to the point of waking up her snoozing daughter. Grateful for the way out, Sam gave the excuse of having to put Annie to bed before rushing away from the phone to tend to the sleepy toddler who was whimpering in her arms.

“You want to sleep with me, huh?” Kara raised a brow as seductively as she could muster. 

“No… I mean, yes? But not if you don’t want to.” Lena stammered drunkenly, there was nothing sane about the woman after four bottles of wine, despite what she would let her daughter believe. “I’m easy either way.. I mean, I’m not easy but I’m happy because I like you, I like you a lot.” She smiled, a big toothy smile that very few people ever got to see. 

“Well, I wouldn’t mind sleeping with you either.” Kara pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth, smiling when she tasted like wine and garlic. It was so natural, it tasted like their evening together. Tasted like happiness and like they weren’t trying too hard to be close with one another. 

“Want to come over tonight?” Lena slurred, letting Kara’s strong arms hold her up as she swayed a little on her feet.

“I’d love to, but we should wait to be more sober before we do anything, babe.” Kara used the nickname for good measure, forgoing the trip to the bar in favour of walking Lena back to her house. 

Kara took most of her date’s weight on the walk home. It was really no trouble for her and her super strength, just grateful to have seen Lena be able to let go and enjoy herself in a way that wasn’t intended to please two year olds. Lena fumbled with her keys for so long that Kara resolved the situation by timply unlocking it by herself, ensuring that it was locked again as they made their way through to the living room. 

“Come here.” Lena beckoned, sitting on the couch having thrown the blazer from her pantsuit on the seat next to her. “I can’t kiss you when you’re so far away!” Lena whined, the alcohol peaking in her system. 

“One kiss, then I think you should go to bed?” Kara decided. She didn’t know what it was like to be drunk, alcohol never affected her and the last thing that she wanted was to take advantage of Lena in any way. She pressed her lips to Lena’s, loving how she ran her hands through her hair and started to touch all of her body. She pulled away when Lena started to kiss down her neck, sloppily and drunkenly.

“That was a lot more than one, babe.” Kara shifted, helping her to stand up.

“Be my girlfriend!” Lena blurted. There was no preparation, no preamble, but yet it didn’t seem to be a spur of the moment decision.

“Yes.” Kara giggled, giving in when Lena kissed her once again, never letting her lips go further than her face or neck. Lena meant too much to her for her to be hurt in any way and she was going to take care of her.

It wasn’t long before Lena started to get sleepy, resting herself up against Kara’s body, asking to be held when they went to sleep. Kara hadn’t necessarily considered that she would be spending the night, but there was no way in hell that she could pass up an opportunity to hold Lena all night long. They made their way to Lena’s bedroom which was entirely as Kara had expected it to be. There was thick beige carpet on the floor and plain white wall. There were two more rooms coming off of Lena’s, one was a dressing room and the other was the en-suite, the third door leading to her private balcony. Her bedding was all white and, once again, the only colour in the room came from photos and drawings from her toddler. 

“You look so pretty right there. Stop!” Lena almost demanded as she took out her phone to photograph her girlfriend, texting it to Sam with the caption intending to say something about how she wasn’t single. Realistically though, there was no way that a sober woman could decode the scrambled letters and the fuzzy photograph. 

“You’re too kind.” Kara mentally resisted leaning over to make out with her girlfriend. “Where do you keep your pjs? And can I borrow some.” She asked a little sheepishly, loving the overly romanticised idea of borrowing her girlfriend’s clothes. Lena pointed her to a drawer and she chose out some clothes for the two of them, snuggling down into the bed in one of Lena’s old sleep shirts. 

Kara established herself as the big spoon, letting an arm wrap around Lena’s waist, her head buried in the coconut scented, raven hair. The whole situation was utter bliss. She pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head as she felt her breathing evening out with the prospect of sleep. 

“Thank you for tonight, Kar. I really enjoyed it.” Lena barely managed to finish her sentence before she passed out blissfully in the arms of her girlfriend. It was the first night she had spent with someone in almost four years, and she was so grateful that Kara could be the one that she got to spend it with.

“You’re special, baby. Sleep so well.” Kara relaxed next to her. Although she never wanted the moment to end, she was incredibly excited to wake up to see what her new life and relationship would hold for them. There was just one thing holding her back… one minor detail… one world famous detail: Supergirl


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here comes the storm...
> 
> T/W mentions of rape

Lena yawned as she opened her eyes, cherishing the fact that she got to wake up by herself, no toddler bouncing on her chest, and no alarm blaring for her to go to work. She briefly registered the arm around her waist, doing a double take when she realised that she had shared her bed with someone. Her head was pounding as she rolled over, hoping that this wasn’t something that she would regret later on. 

“Good morning, beautiful.” Kara smiled through her words, lifting the arm that was around Lena’s waist in order to move a strand of the raven hair from her eyes. “How are you feeling?” Kara asked and pieces of the evening started to slot into place, remembering how they had gone to dinner, drained four bottles of wine and gone for a walk. Her memories after that were scrambled, but she couldn’t help the fact that she didn't mind. If there was one person she was glad to have spent time with, it was Kara. 

“Hey.” She mumbled an answer, ignoring her question and snuggling deeper into the sheets. “What’s the time?” She couldn’t stop her giddy smile as she felt Kara wrap her arms around her once again. 

“Nine.” Kara smiled as well, pressing a kiss to Lena’s nose. That’s when everything clicked for her. She had asked Kara to be her girlfriend when she was out of her mind drunk. 

“I haven’t slept that well in so long!” Lena yawned again, deciding she would test what their new relationship would mean as she leaned over to Kara's pillow, pressing a warm ‘good morning’ kiss to her lips. Kara instantly kissed her back, pulling Lena closely into her chest to cuddle. 

“You’re so cute in the mornings.” Kara spoke softly, tilting Lena’s chin up so that she could kiss her again. It was a sort of honeymoon-esque bliss as they reveled in being close to each other for as long as they could before they were rudely interrupted by Kara’s rumbling stomach. 

“Did you want to get breakfast? We have food here or you could order something? We could go out? But I’ll have to get back here for midday.” Lena explained, knowing that was when Sam was dropping off Annie. The girl would undoubtedly be bouncing off the walls when she got back, more than excited to be going to the city tomorrow in preparation for her business trip with her mommy. 

“I could make us some pancakes? I made killer vegan ones the other day.” Kara said, immediately blushing when she realized what she had admitted to.

“Kara Danvers made vegan food? That can’t be true! What have you done with my girlfriend?!” Lena giggled, feigning shock as she pulled herself from under the covers, putting on a pair of socks to brace herself for walking on the cold hardwood of her hallways. 

“I thought I’d learn to cook a few things for you.” Kara shrugged, following Lena through to her bathroom so they could both brush their teeth. “Back to before, is Annie coming home for midday?” 

“Yeah, why?” Lena got the toothpaste out of one of her three bathroom cabinets, her girlfriend just watching in amazement as she maneuvered herself around the huge bathroom. 

“I’ll make sure I’m gone by then.” Kara promised, her arms firmly around Lenas waist, her chin finding a place to rest on Lena’s shoulder. “Got any plans for the mommy daughter day?” She asked, revelling in her little domestic moment with her girlfriend. 

“You don’t have to leave. I was thinking we could have a movie day? I have plans with the peanut tomorrow anyways.” Lena shrugged, making a conscious effort to make room for both of the girls in her life now. 

“Are you sure?” Kara smiled, so proud to be let in even further. 

“You’ve been around here with her before and she didn’t mind. You can leave if she’s not happy when she gets home… or you don't have to stay if you’d rather go somewhere else.” She spoke nervously, understanding how much of a huge jump this is. 

“No, I’d love to stay, I just don’t want to overstep.” Kara started kissing Lena’s neck and shoulders, revelling in her morning beauty before they made their way to the kitchen. The blonde made sure that her girlfriend didn’t do any work, wanting to take care of her in the way that she deserved. She handed her a tall mug of black coffee before she started on the pancakes, scoffing at the lack of sweet toppings to go with them.

“Baby, you seriously have no syrup? Your kitchen needs a major makeover if you expect me to come over ever again.” She chuckled, setting down the pancakes and fruit before settling opposite Lena at the table. She was preoccupied with her phone, completely missing what Kara had said to her.

“Annie’s coming back in a minute, you’re still welcome to stay.” Lena tried her best to sound sweet as she spoke but the words sounded cold and short as they fell from her tongue, laced with anger and disappointment. She didn’t look up as she replied, instead she was angrily typing out a response, her short fingernails clicking against the screen.

“Is everything okay?” Kara asked gently, nudging her girlfriend’s foot under the table as she took a bite from the untouched pancakes. 

“Yep. Yeah I’m okay, I’m gonna shower before Annie gets here. Make yourself comfortable, you can stay as long as you want.” Lena didn’t want to get angry in front of Kara. When she was angry, she cried, and as she learnt from Lex, crying meant weakness. “I’ll be back.” 

She disappeared from the room and Kara would have been lying if she said she hadn’t used her powers to listen out for Lena. She promised that she would stop listening if she spoke about anything private, but all she could hear was things smashing amongst Lena’s broken sobs. She knew the bathroom would likely be an absolute disaster but she knew better than to interfere with Lena’s emotions, letting her get a hold of what she was feeling before Annie got home.

She came downstairs looking a little nervous, dressed in a hoodie and jeans. Her wet hair was piled into a messy bun and her eyes were red raw as they fell on Kara. The taller girl opened her arms to Lena, beckoning for her to come to the couch, and she obliged, silently cuddling into Kara. Why could nothing ever be simple for Lena? She whispered reassurances and sweet nothings to her as they relaxed, the brunette trying her best to hide the fact that she was shaking.

“Mommy!” Annie’s voice tore through the room and Lena immediately sprung into mom mode, wiping her eyes to hide any remnants of what just happened. The toddler raced into the room, followed by Sam a few seconds later, her face showing pain and anger as well. Maybe they had a fight - Kara thought. 

“Are you doing okay?” Sam asked, momentarily ignoring Kara in favour of giving her best friend a bone crushing hug, Kara made a note that it definitely wasn’t a fight. Annie had already found her place cuddled into Lena’s chest and her mommy didn’t look like she would be letting go for anything. 

“I mean, what do you think?” Lena laughed coldly, the way that Luthors laughed and it chilled Kara to her core. “You think it’s too early for scotch?” 

“Far too early.” Kara couldn’t help interjecting, wanting to help in any way that she could, but nervous that Sam wouldn't respect her for doing so. Sam introduced herself when Kara made her presence known and Kara returned the favour, protectively reaching for one of Lena’s hands and squeezing it tightly. 

“You seem to be doing good with Kara?” Sam stated but it sounded more like a question, making her heart race. What did she mean by that? And why was it phrased like a question?. “Rubes is waiting in the car so I’m gonna go, but call me if you need anything at all... '' Sam gave her another tight hug and Kara was so glad that she had such a loving friend in her life. 

“Thank you so much for everything.” Lena smiled sadly, covering Annie’s ears so she couldn’t hear what she said next. “If you hadn’t been here, I think I might have murdered that sorry bastard by now!” Lena spoke and Kara heard how serious she sounded, her hairs once again standing on end on her arms and neck. This version of her girlfriend was so different from the woman that she was used to, and it made her wonder what she was hiding from her. 

Sam left and Kara excused herself to the bathroom, pacing nervously around the extravagantly tiled floors. The unexplained anger and silence, the need to suddenly disappear to the bathroom, wanting to be with her daughter quicker than before, talking of murder? Alex was right, Lena was exactly the kind of Luthor that she had promised she wouldn’t be. Now she had Kara in her own house, she had the power, and if she had Kryptonite, that was it for her. She was standing where she would die.

She turned her super hearing downstairs to hear Lena talking to Annie. There was no doubt that her daughter was the centre of her world but the way she spoke had an edge to it. It was almost as if it would be the final time she would get to see her, the final conversation that they would share in person. 

“Mommy loves you so much, baby girl, but sometimes, I have to do things that even I don’t like.” She could hear Lena shushing Annie’s crying. “You wont understand this now, I know you won’t, but I will do everything in my power to make sure I can see you every day. Everything I do is for you, baby -.” Lena continued but Kara had to stop listening. From what she could gather, the woman she was falling for was plotting against her, and it hurt badly. 

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before leaving the bathroom, her arms raised above her head as if she were ready to surrender. Lena gave her the most questioning look she had ever seen, moving Annie to her bedroom when she sensed that something was wrong. The whole morning had been a mess, Lena thought, of course Kara wouldn't want to stick around. Seeing the fear and confusion 

“I know you know about me. And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner but I was just too scared of what might happen, and now it’s happening and I could’ve flown out the window but I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye because I’m falling for you and I know its dumb…” Kara rambled nervously, giving herself up to a completely unassuming Lena. “Please don't kill me!” Kara practically begged for her life and Lena turned a shade of red that she had never seen before. It was complete and utter anger, rage colouring her usually ivory skin.

“What the hell are you talking about? Killing you?” Lena snapped, so offended that even after all of this time, Kara couldn’t see past the Luthor name enough to just accept that she was having a bad day. 

“I know that you know I’m Supergirl but please don’t use Kryptonite… please.” Kara rambled again and Lena’s glare hardened. 

“You- You’re Supergirl? And just because my name is Luthor, I have to kill you? Get your head out of your own ass, Kara!” Lena spat, angry tears spilling down her cheeks, sick with disappointment and anger. She was shocked, of course she was, but her shock was nothing in comparison to the pain she was feeling. 

“You don’t want to kill me?” She gasped and Lena advanced on her angrily, her hands in fists so tight that her nails broke through the skin. 

“Why would I kill my fucking girlfriend?” Lena kicked the table, trying to change the emotional torture to physical pain. 

“I thought that was what you were talking about with Sam…” Kara whispered, realising the massive mistake that she had made. “I should have just asked you but I got myself scared and worked up.” Kara’s excuses fell flat and Lena unclenched her fists, reaching to grab her phone from her pocket. 

“Want to know what I was talking about with Sam?” She handed Kara her cell, displaying the texts from Andrew demanding that he get to see Annie, threatening both Lena and her daughter if he didn’t get to spend time with her. “Her father is trying to impress his new girlfriend by using Annie as bait! So maybe I wasn’t happy this morning, but I doubt you would be happy either if a man who raped you was begging to see your daughter!” Lena couldn’t stop the tears from falling as her voice cracked, her words falling from her lips quicker than she could control. It was one of her many terrible traits, only opening up to someone when she was angry with them, and she was even angrier when she realised that Kara was only the second person in the world to truly know how Annie was conceived. 

“Lena, baby, I didn’t know, I’m sorry-” Kara started as Lena cut her off.

“I don’t want your apology, and I don’t want you in my house, Kara.” She snapped, her eyes bloodshot and her words laced with venom in a way that Kara had never heard before. 

“I’m so sorry, I will do anything-” 

“Get out my fucking house. I can’t stand the sight of you!” Lena swung open the front door, not caring how tears pooled in Kara’s eyes, or how she looked ridiculously apologetic. She needed to be away from her before she said something she would really regret. She picked up her phone the second that Kara was out of sight, calling Sam and explaining everything, calling into work sick to say she couldn’t make the business trip. Sam promised to be over within the hour to stay for the rest of the weekend and Jess promised Lena that she could find someone else capable of giving the presentation for her in Italy that week, telling her it was no problem at all. 

She took a few minutes to compose herself before going to the kitchen to make lunch. She angrily cut into bread and salad, making her daughter sandwiches, insistent on the fact that she would be healthy, no matter how terrible Lena was feeling about herself at the time. Nothing at all could get in the way of her parenting. So now Kara was gone? That was just a bump in the roan, she would soon recover, just one more scar added to her body. 

She was eternally grateful for Annie’s excited chatter about Ruby, talking about how they made popcorn last night and they were allowed to eat it whilst they sang along to disney films. Lena didn’t catch the name of what they watched, but talked along anyway, loving how the two year old’s drabbles could distract her from even her worst situations. She would never let Annie know how much she had changed her life, knowing the pressure was too much for a child to handle. But she told her every day how much she utterly adored her and she would never stop doing just that. 

Sam arrived within the hour as promised and Lena was just grateful for the company as they moved wordlessly around her house, stopping to speak only when Annie and Ruby asked for their attention. The company of the children was so refreshing, so care free and loving. It was the situation that Lena thrived in and she couldn’t help from dreaming about the thought of a second child. Of course, she dismissed the idea as quickly as it came to the surface, knowing that her life was barely stable enough to raise one child, let alone two. But she would love to see Annie with a sibling. 

Bathtime and bedtime were more excitable than normal, both Annie and Ruby made a point of splashing each other happily, Lena laughing along with them, playing with the bubbles before dressing them in their matching pyjamas and tucking them into bed. Ruby insisted on them staying awake once Lena left because ‘that’s what older girls do when they do a sleepover’ and Lena let them, very aware that her daughter had the absolute inability to stay awake past nine o’clock, no matter the circumstances. So what if Annie went to bed at seven on most nights, today wasn’t most days, and she wouldn’t be a mother who denied her daughter fun. 

She made her way down to the living room, glasses in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. She rested her head on Sam’s shoulder and took a long gulp of her wine, feeling her phone vibrate in her pocket. Fearing it was Andrew again, she checked the text, almost disgusted when she read who it was from. 

Hey, Lee. I was completely wrong and there are no words to express how terrible I feel. You’re special and fantastic and beautiful and such an amazing mother. I wasn’t thinking, I was stupid and irrational and it was completely the wrong time for me to say the things that I did. I feel so terrible for doing this to you, I’m not expecting you to forgive me but I would do anything for the chance to explain this to you. I hope everything’s going okay with you and Annie and you might hate me, that’s fair, but if you need anything at all then please let me know. I’m so sorry Lena, I miss you already. - K x

“Remember when I told you that I liked Kara?” Lena broke the silence, moving a hand to wipe away her tears. She hated feeling like this and there was nothing she could do about it. Kara had never truly trusted her, what they had wasn’t real and Lena could already feel herself building her defences up again. 

“Do I have to kill her?” Sam almost growled, she knew Kara had done something to upset Lena but she didn’t want to press her luck by trying to get her to speak. Lena was temperamental, only speaking when she wanted to, otherwise it was impossible to get her to open up.

“I don’t think you could kill Supergirl.” Lena scoffed, letting out a heart wrenching sob.

“Kara? Is Supergirl?” Lena simply nodded, biting at one of her fingernails til the tips of her fingers bled.

“She thought we were plotting against her or something. She seemed so convinced that I wanted her dead. She thought I was Lex.” She whimpered, her bottom lip trembling. It was her biggest fear that people would think she was the same as her brother, she had so much money and so much power in the city and she genuinely didn’t care anymore if that all fell through. What would the public think of her app? Nobody would download something from a Luthor, for all they knew, it could be dangerous.

“You’re not like him… Babe you're not like him at all.” Sam pulled her into her chest as she cried. “Don’t let her get in your head, she doesn’t mean anything. What does Kara Danvers know about you, anyway?” She tried to help, pointing out that anyone who got to know Lena wouldn’t feel this way. 

“She knows about Annie, I told her about Andrew.” She hung her head. “She knows all my shit, Sam, and she still thinks I’m a Luthor.” She sat up straight, suddenly flooded with determination. “Nobody will download my app, that’s fine, I can sell off the idea.” Lena nodded, making plans in her head for a project that nobody could ever refuse.

Meanwhile, Kara was at the door of Alex’s apartment, trying her best to compose herself before she knocked on the door. It was nine o’clock and she had spent the day flying around the city in an attempt to clear her head. Alex must have heard her cries as the door slowly opened, revealing her sister in her pyjamas, Kelly under a blanket on the couch behind her. 

“Baby Danvers, who hurt you?” She asked immediately, letting her sister sit on the couch with her and her wife. 

“I fucked up.” Kara whimpered, feeling utterly terrible about how everything had gone down. She was a bad person for saying what she had said, so presumptuous. 

“You never swear… this must be bad.” Alex tried to joke but Kara had no reaction but closing her eyes tightly and biting down hard on her lip.

“Lena was talking about killing someone and I didn’t know she wasn’t serious and I freaked out and told her my secret and told her not to kill me because she’s a Luthor!” Kara sobbed. “I did exactly what I told you not to do and she kicked me out and I think I’ve ruined everything with her.” 

“Yeah. That’s bad, that’s really bad.” Kelly admitted, opening her arms to Kara for a hug.

“I need to make this up to her somehow.” Kara stopped herself crying, self pity wouldn’t work if she wanted Lena back. She had done the wrong thing and the only person who could make things right now was her. “How about we…” The three women stayed up all night making plans of what they could do, Kara shooting down all the ideas involving things as petty as flowers, Lena deserved a lot more than that.   
It would almost be romantic to think of the two women, on opposite sides of the city, spending their nights thinking of each other, if they weren’t both so torn apart. Nevertheless, both women had a plan, Lena ready to make a new name for herself and Kara ready to be forgiven. Of course, neither task was as easy at it had sounded in their heads.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not very happy with how this chapter turned out, it feels a little rushed but I couldn't think of another way to get all of the secrets out in the open so quickly. Now they're both completely honest with each other, the story and angst shall continue.  
> Thank y'all for reading, I'm always very happy with comments, suggestions & kudos.  
> If y'all wanna submit prompts to my tumblr (@/illegally-luthor) I'm gonna be writing prompts for supercorp and avalance on there as well so hmu. 
> 
> thank y'all  
> lu xox


	7. Chapter 7

It had been one week since Kara and Lena had fought. For Lena, that had meant a week of endless research and seven days of receiving bunches of flowers. For Kara, it had been a week of flying around National City, saving victims of crimes and trying her hardest to think of a way that Lena could forgive her. Annie had spent the week going between her mommy, daycare and auntie Sam. It had been a busy seven days for everyone in Lena’s life and it was starting to show. The mother had barely been eating or sleeping, spreading herself ridiculously thin between everywhere she was needed. 

Annie was sat on the floor of the living room, colouring in a book that her mother had bought for her earlier that day. Lena was tucked up on the couch, a blanket over her lap and her hair in a messy bun on the top of her head. So what if she hadn’t eaten yet today, wine was made from grapes and in her mind, that was the same as food. She wasn't drinking enough to get drunk, but she was drinking just enough to forget the fact that Kara had completely betrayed her. 

“Mommy.” Annie’s sweet voice broke her from her thoughts. “I’m hungry.” She smiled, hoping that she could convince her mom to give her a nice snack before bed. 

“What do you want, bug?” She moved onto the floor with her daughter, realising that she too could eat. “We can have anything we want.” She moved to Annie and complimented her colouring. Nothing was in the lines, but that didn’t matter to either of them. Lena didn’t even care that there was red crayon in her cream carpet, she didn’t care because when Annie gave her the cutest, toothiest grin, she knew she was doing the right thing. 

“I dunno!” She giggled, melting Lena’s heart with her huge doe eyes. 

“How about, we make cupcakes? I’ve missed doing things with you.” Lena suggested, setting Annie on her hip. On top of everything else going on in her life, Lena had become very aware of the fact that Annie was three next week. Her little baby could do so much by herself now and it was playing on her mind that her baby was growing into a child before her very eyes. 

“Can we have chocolate?” Annalise asked, her smile growing even wider as Lena got all of the ingredients out of the cupboards. 

“Of course we can!” Lena set about making them, giving Annie some chocolate chips to eat as she added all of the ingredients together by herself. She let Annie mix it all, smiling as she thought about how amazing her daughter was. She wasn’t one to try and plan her child’s future but every time she saw Annie do something she couldn’t help wondering about her. Maybe she would be a business woman, or a scientist, or a baker or a dancer? Maybe she’d get married to a man or to a woman and have children and pets, or maybe she’d make a huge group of friends and travel the world? She had no idea, but she did know that Annie would be fantastic in whatever she did, and she would be by her side through all of it. 

The mother and daughter spent the evening playing around in the kitchen, icing the cupcakes and dancing to music as they baked. It felt surreal to Lena that someone could ever be as happy and as carefree as Annie still is, but she intended to keep her that way for as long as possible. She smiled down at her toddler, who was giggling so happily, and smiled so widely to herself. The girl was going to love her birthday so much. Lena had taken the whole day off work to prepare for it and she had the whole day to give to Annie alone.

“We watch a movie, mommy?” Annie asked, rubbing her eyes tiredly, trying her hardest to use her sugar high to keep her awake past eight o’clock.

“How about we go to mommy’s room and watch a movie in my bed?” Lena scooped her up, pressing a kiss to her temple, knowing Annie would be unlikely to be able to stay awake for much longer.

So, the first week passed pretty easily for Lena. Despite the daily reminder of a bunch of flowers sent to her door from Kara, she managed to get through most of her day without thinking of their fight. She wasn’t so lucky, however, in the second week. It had been her task, her project with the funding from work to cure cancer and she had spent the whole damn week in her lab doing patch tests of different drugs on the back of her own hands. Nobody wanted to do a clinical trial for a Luthor, so she was the scientist and the test subject. 

It was wednesday when she finally took a lunch break from work, rubbing over some of the scars on the back of her hands from the negative reactions she had to the drugs. She was sitting at her desk, not necessarily eating, but instead looking at her salad. She had no appetite, Annie was three tomorrow, Sam had gone on an emergency trip to New York to settle something for work, leaving her on the complete opposite side of the country, and she still hadn’t spoken to Kara since their argument. The last thing she was expecting was to hear a knock at the door.

“Tell me to leave, and I’ll leave but I brought you lunch.” Kara stood there sheepishly, one hand in her pocket and the other one holding up the vegan pizza. She could tell how terrible Lena was feeling, her eyes were sunk and surrounded by dark circles, her hair less shiny and her skin impossibly pale. She noticed there was a new photograph on her desk, one of Annie, her hand full of chocolate chips that she was seemingly eating very happily. She was getting ready to make a comment about the photograph when Lena’s head snapped up.

“Leave.” She spoke coldly, it was obvious that she was trying to hide her sadness now as her eyes clouded with tears. Lena reached up a hand to wipe them away, allowing Kara to briefly notice the marks on the back of them. She was becoming more and more worried about the woman as time went on. 

“What happened to your-” Kara started but was instantly cut off.

“I said leave, Do I need to get Jess to escort you out?” Lena spoke once again, her voice unwavering as she turned to her computer, her tears silently falling. She searched and searched through all of the databases at L-Corp, barely registering as Kara left with tears in her own eyes. She found absolutely nothing the whole time, frustrated and crying at her screen until three o’clock when Annie burst through the door, tugging Jess in the room with her. 

“Mommy! Jessie bringed me!” She made grabbing motions at her mother who was hastily trying to cover up her emotions. 

“That’s super nice of Jess, isn’t it, bug?” She smiled down at Annie. “ Please feel free to take the rest of the day off, full pay. Thank you so much for getting my bug for me!” Lena kissed her temple and then her cheek before smiling up at Jess to let her know she was being serious. For the rest of the week, Annie was brought to her office by Jess and they went about their routines.

Every night, the duo went home and made dinner, had a bath and played a board game before Annie went to bed. This time, a week later, she was a lot more excitable than usual, repeatedly opening her eyes as Lena read her a story, discussing how excited she was for her birthday tomorrow. Lena then made her way through to her own room, noticing something outside on her balcony. 

Feeling the adrenaline course through her body, she pulled the knife that she kept under her bed, keeping it by her side as a precautionary measure. With all of the attempts on her life, she had to be prepared as she opened the sliding glass door to reveal someone standing there. It wasn’t until the cape blew in the wind that she registered who was standing there. Supergirl in all her lying glory.

“Lena, I- I didn’t mean to scare you.” Kara whispered, taking note of the knife in Lena’s hand.

“You thought you would just show up on my balcony and I wouldn’t be scared?” Lena spoke in such a way that it made Kara feel physically pained, the kind of pain she wasn’t used to since she had been on earth.

“No- I-.” Kara stammered. “Hear me out.” She mumbled, taking a step closer to Lena. 

“Why should I?” Lena took a threatening step closer to Kara, closing the gap between the two of them. She could feel Kara’s hot breath on her lips as she spoke again. “I should hate you for what you did.” 

“You should hate me, I hate me.” Kara tried her hardest not to cry. Usually the suit made her feel strong, but Lena brought out all of her weaknesses.

“Why did you say it? Some kind of practical joke?” Lena spat, turning on her heel and pacing around the balcony. 

“I was dumb and naive! I didn’t know what you had been through! People hear the name and they run and I tried my hardest to ignore prejudices but I just couldn’t help it on that day! I would be giving you more space but I’m so worried about you right now!” Kara snapped, not realising how scared she truly was for Lena until she felt herself start to cry, shocked when Lena cried too. 

“You can’t just come into my house and insult me, Supergirl.” Lena pulled her hands into her sleeves, trying to ignore the cold night air of the March evenings. “You’re meant to protect people but you hurt me more than I thought anyone could!” 

“I can’t apologise enough!” Kara almost shouted and Lena took a moment to take in her costume. It was the first time she was seeing supergirl up close and it was completely unfair how fantastic she looked. Her shirt clung to her abs and her biceps and her skirt barely covered her. She almost chuckled as she thought about who must have made the suit for her, it made no sense for her to be that exposed.

“You’re right! Nothing you can say will make this better!” Lena snapped, drawing her attention away from Kara’s body. Kara didn’t miss how her eyes wandered though, daring to take a step closer.

“Is there anything I can do to fix it?” They came face to face once again, despite the anger between the two of them, the chemistry was palpable, the air in the room was so thick it could be cut with a knife. 

“I don’t know, Supergirl, I thought you were the expert in saving the day.” Lena spoke, closing the gap between them, waiting for Kara to kiss her. She didn’t have to wait long before the taller woman had swept her off her feet and carried her through to her bedroom. Teeth were grazing lips and hands were travelling each other’s bodies, taking Kara out of her suit until she was wearing nothing but her underwear when there was the unmistakable sound of tiny footsteps running excitedly up the corridor.

“Shit! Get under the covers and… I don’t know! Don’t you dare show Annie that you’re naked!” Lena gasped, nervously adjusting her sleep shirt.

“Mommy! Is it my birthday?” Annie asked and Kara’s jaw nearly hit the floor. In the mess of her relationship with Lena, she had completely forgotten about Annie’s third birthday and she felt incredibly guilty about it. She smiled when she realised the date: March seventeenth - Saint Patrick’s Day. Annie was born on the ‘Irish Holiday’ as Lena always referred to it, and Kara simply could not think of a more fitting date. Lena cracked a wide smile when she saw Annie’s excited face. Technically, at one in the morning, it was her birthday, but what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her. 

“Not quite yet, bug. We’ve got to have a bit more sleep before it’s time for your birthday.” Lena knelt down in front of her. “If you sleep now then your birthday will come around even quicker, I promise you.” The toddler was obviously too excited by the prospect of getting presents in the morning that she could barely contain herself. 

“Is Kara here for my birthday?” She pointed to the bed and Lena could feel her cheeks burning angrily, she couldn’t deny Annie the happiness of seeing Kara on her birthday. She’d let someone into Annie’s life only to disappoint her. Nothing could stop the pain she was feeling. Her only family was her mother… even her aunt wasn’t a blood relative. 

“Yeah, sweetie! I came to tell you happy birthday, I just got here really early.” Kara smiled. “You should listen to mommy and go back to bed so that I can wish you a happy birthday tomorrow!” 

“Okay!” Annie obliged quickly, always having a sweet spot for Kara. “Mommy, can I go up.” She held out her arms to be carried back to bed.

“Come on then, bug, I’ll read you a story and then you have to sleep until you’re three!” She cuddled Annie into bed, savouring her sweet cuddles which she knew were finite. “I love you all the way to the moon.” Lena whispered as she left the sleepy girl to her dreams, her heart stopping momentarily when Annie mumbled in her sleep that she loved her too. 

She went to the kitchen before going back to her bedroom, pouring herself a glass of scotch as she knew that she couldn’t have this conversation with Kara sober. She straightened herself out and looked in the mirror, really realising how much she had let herself go recently, letting her hair out of the bun and sighing.

“Lee, I don’t have to stay tomorrow, I was just trying to avoid Annie’s questions.” Kara sat with a sheet wrapped around her body, looking nervously at the mother who threw hre a sleep shirt to put on, the last thing she needed was to spend a night with Kara in practically no clothes.

“Maybe you should stay.” Lena sighed, taking a seat on the opposite end of the bed. “You don’t want to upset the birthday girl! And it’s not like anybody else is coming to see her, anyways.” She kicked the edge on the bed and Kara instinctively moved closer, placing a hand on her thigh in an attempt to stop her from hurting herself. 

“Is it just the two of you tomorrow?” Kara asked gently and Lena could feel the tears pricking in her eyes for what felt like the millionth time that day. 

“We don’t really have anyone else, so yeah.” She laughed bitterly but Kara could tell there was so much sadness behind it. “Sam had an emergency business trip so it’s just the two of us now.” 

“You know my sister?” Kara asked gently, letting Lena fall against her chest, feeling her nod as she did so. “Her daughter turned two a few weeks ago… I could see if they are free? We could take Annie and Scarlett out to the kids museum or something? I’ll order her a cake and we can have a little party?” 

“Look Kara, if I say yes to this, that doesn’t get you off the hook for being a complete bitch the other day. Okay?” Lena made it clear, even if she was completely unwilling to move from Kara’s embrace. 

“Of course not.” Kara held a hand over her heart as if she was giving some kind of girl scout promise. “I hate to ask, but have you heard anything from her father about her birthday?” Kara laid the two of them down, carding her hands through Lena’s hair.

“Promise you won't accuse me of plotting your murder if I talk about him?” Lena attempted to joke sarcastically, the joke falling flat on their fresh wounds. 

“Please, Lee, I just want to see you smile.” Kara sighed, tucking the duvet around her girlfriend? Her ex girlfriend? They had yet to clarify what was going on between them. 

“He told me he was going to take us to court again, something about needing his girlfriend to meet her.” She tried not to get emotional, but every time she thought of him, she could feel herself shuddering. 

“Do you not just want to do a supervised visit, get it all out of the way without going to court?” Kara suggested lightly, trying her hardest not to upset Lena. 

“My daughter isn’t some bargaining chip in a relationship! Her father is a terrible person, Kara, okay! He raped me, I couldn’t go to the cops about it because nobody would believe me! There wasn’t a single day in my pregnancy when I thought that I didn’t deserve this pain because I’m a Luthor! He hurt me because he didn’t want me in society!” Lena wasn't crying, it was as if she had become immune to her own stories, like she was telling them for someone else rather than herself. “I wanted to kill him, the first time I have ever felt something that dark was when he tried to take Annie from me when she was one! She loved her daddy! Of course she would, he used to come home from business trips with stuffed toys and candies and he never disciplined her because that’s what I was here for. He never loved her though, I hate how he uses her. Kar, she’s so little, and so perfect and if he hurts her then I don’t know what I would do, I could never live with myself.” 

“Come here, I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry for everything.” She held on to her so tightly, letting the slightly younger woman cry. “You make all the calls from now on, you’re her only legal guardian. You can make the calls over Andrew and Annie and even with us, okay? I trust you wholeheartedly and Annie does too. I support any decision you make.” She reached for Lena’s hand to hold and brought it to her lips when she didn’t feel any resistance. It was what Lena needed to hear, she needed to be trusted. 

“What we tried to do earlier… you know…” She gestured towards the supersuit on the floor and Kara nodded. “It was the wrong thing to do. I think you’re hot, okay? But it’s not what we need right now, I need to be here for Annie and sort out my relationship with Andrew.”

“So are we over?” Kara asked sadly, willing for any kind of forgiveness that there was. Sure they had been together for less than a day but they had been thick as thieves for almost four months at this point, it would be hard to let go of someone like that. Kara wasn’t ready to feel the way that she did when she saw Lena walk into the courtroom. She wasn’t expecting to get along so well with Annie. She wasn’t expecting to spend a few of her evenings just sat on the floor of Lena’s house, holding up dolls and monster trucks for a two year old to play with whilst her mother worked. The whole experience was completely surreal to her, and thinking about it in any kind of detail made her realise how she had truly fallen in love.

She had always heard Alex talk of being in love when she spoke about Kelly but she truly never thought that she could feel this way too. She loved her soft, dark hair and her warm green eyes. She loved her voice which was ever so slightly tinged with an Irish accent that Kara found utterly irresistible. She loved how she could rant for hours about her daughter or about some kind of history or science that she had been studying in her spare time. She loved her curves and how she managed to look just as beautiful dressed up as she did in a sleep shirt or covered in toddler vomit. She loved Lena Luthor, a fact which was only confirmed by the pain she felt when she was away from her. 

“I don’t want to be over… but you’re on a very fine line right now.” Lena sighed. It was a massive thing to forgive Kara for and she would not let it go unremembered. But she had to be kind to herself. If she were honest, she could see how much it was hurting Kara to have her angry at her, and she knew that the mistake she made was an honest one. Who is it to say that she wouldn’t have said the same thing had she been in the same situation as Kara. 

“Absolutely, I don’t expect forgiveness for what I did. But I want to try and make it up to you, you can choose the date, plan it around Annie, or she can come with us! But I want to take you out to lunch soon?” Kara suggested and Lena moved up to her lips.

“I think that would be really good for us.” She gave her a quick kiss, not wanting anything further any time soon. If they were doing this, they were taking it slowly. 

Soon after the women had kissed, they had both fallen asleep, Lena exhausted from her day of experiments, and Kara exhausted from stress. Of course, this didn’t stop the three year old bounding through the bedroom door at sunrise, interrupting their four hours of sleep. Lena groaned inwardly, knowing she couldn’t be upset about the fact that her baby was so excited for her big day and Kara practically sprang out of bed, obviously not used to having a human alarm every day of her life. 

“Mommy! It’s my birthday!” Annie jumped onto her bed, bouncing around excitedly, bringing a bony knee into Lena’s ribs. She let out a gasp in pain before setting the toddler on the floor and laughing. 

“That hurt me, bug! Let me go to the bathroom and we can see if anyone brought you any presents this year.” Lena smiled down at the girl who stared up at the bed, locking eyes with Kara. 

“Mommy! Kara comed for my birthday!” Annie wriggled onto the bed. She absolutely adored the blonde woman, snuggling into her chest without warning. Lena had already disappeared into the bathroom so Kara just gave in and cuddled Annie closely, sitting her on her hip and singing happy birthday to her as they danced excitedly around the room together. Lena couldn’t quite contain her happiness when she reentered the room, seeing how Kara acted around her daughter. 

They made their way downstairs and Annie screamed with the absolute most excitement when she saw the pile of presents that were waiting for her on the floor. Nervously, Lena eyed one up that she didn’t remember putting down there. Her anxieties were calmed slightly when she felt Kara’s hand in her own, nodding as if to say she had got that one for Annie, whispering ‘I may or may not have flown to Texas to find a store that was open at two in the morning’. 

Annie tore through all of her presents, happily explaining all of her toys to both Lena and Kara as if they didn’t understand what they were better than the three year old. Both women often chimed in with comments to keep the girl happy as they sat on the couch, curled into each other and sipping their coffee. She got to Kara’s present and the blonde instantly tore herself from Lena’s arms in favour of sitting on the floor with Annie.

“I got you this one, sweetie, do you know what it is?” Kara asked happily as she saw the little girl’s face twist with confusion as she looked at the little box in her hands.

“What is it?” She scooted herself into Kara’s lap, her hair still messed from sleep but her eyes were open and alert. Lena loved how curious Annie was, her tiny lips were stretched into a smile that met her eyes as Kara started to explain. 

“Well, when I was a little bit older than you, I moved to a different place and my mommy left me with lots of things to remind me of home. She left a flower from my home and we got it pressed into a necklace, and I thought you might like it to remind you of me.” Kara snuggled her closely, looking up at Lena often to make sure she wasn’t crossing any lines as she put the necklace around her neck. 

“Thank you.” Annie smiled, bouncing the pendant between her hands, looking slightly bored with the necklace, but using her manners nonetheless. 

“I also thought that a necklace might be a little boring, huh sweetie? So I got you this as well!” Kara unveiled the doctors kit she had got her, as well as a teddy to practice being a doctor with. 

Annie made hands to grab at the new toys and Lena sat on the couch, happily snapping photos of her daughter, enjoying how they didn’t feel lonely for the first time in a while. She smiled as she took in the scene that was unfolding in front of her. Kara was sat on the floor, her blonde hair down and slightly wavy after being let out of the bun that it was in the night before. As always, her skin was perfect, only being hidden by her thick rimmed glasses which were periodically sliding down the bridge of her nose until one of her cardigan-clad hands reached up to push them back towards her eyes. Annie was beaming on the floor next to her, her dark hair a direct contrast to her girlfriend’s, messy and knotted at the back of her head. Her bright green eyes were wide, happily staring at all of her toys spread around the living room, one of her tiny hands clinging to her necklace which made Lena’s heart practically explode with adoration. 

The blissful scene was interrupted when Kara stopped her game with Annie, encouraging the girl to continue playing by herself whilst she went to talk to Lena. She wrapped her arms around the brunette’s waist, pressing an innocent kiss to her neck before she spoke. 

“Alex replied and said for us to come over for lunch, it’ll give time for Annie to meet Scarlett and then we can go out and do something.” She smiled but Lena’s face turned and looked incredibly nervous. 

“How am I meant to meet your sister right now!? She knows we’ve been fighting, will she not hate me?” 

“The only person she hates for the fight is me, Lee, Alex will love you.” Kara promised her with yet another kiss after she checked that Annie was distracted. “How about you get your pretty little butt ready for today, and I’ll get you and Annalise some birthday pancakes?” She asked and Lena could not stop her smile no matter how hard she tried. 

“Kar, thank you.” She spoke barely above a whisper, her gratefulness evident in her voice. “Annie and I really appreciate it.” She scratched at the back of her hand as she spoke, trying to hide it from Kara.

“Don’t think I haven’t noticed.” She spoke with a sigh, gesturing to her injured hand. “I got you some antibiotic ointment on the way back from getting Annie’s present last night. It’s in the bathroom. I want you to talk to me about how you got those marks though.. But right now you should get ready.”

“Yeah, okay.” She sighed. She got herself dressed into her most expensive jeans and a low - but not too low - cut blouse before checking how she looked in the mirror. She straightened the few fly aways in her hair but left it natural for the most part and did a light natural makeup, using her signature red lipstick to contrast her white blouse. She chose Annie out a yellow dungaree dress and a black and white striped shirt to go underneath it, knowing she would look absolutely adorable in it. She got the tiny girl dressed without much struggle with the use of a huge birthday badge as a bribe for her. 

She was just as shocked as she usually was when she saw Kara was dressed in her own clothes by the time that Lena had come back downstairs, breakfast ready as well. It still seemed impossible for any being, alien or not, to be able to do the things that Kara could do. She chose to push it to the side of her mind, just wanting to celebrate Annie today and fret about Kara’s Kryptonian heritage sometime soon.

She settled Annie at the table, reminding her to thank Kara for the breakfast before she cut her up a pancake and let her feed herself. She hadn’t realised how much she had missed Kara’s intense love for food until she was surrounded by the blonde again, but she had to say that the pancakes were absolutely divine. 

“Have as many as you want, babe, I can make more if we need more.” The blonde spoke, nudging the brunette under the table with her foot. They had agreed to keep the PDA to a minimum whilst Annie was around, at least until they could explain to her what this meant and were sure that it would be a long term commitment. 

Breakfast continued with excited conversation about seeing ‘Kara’s Sissy’ later as well as all of Annie’s new toys and colouring pens that she had received from her mommy and from auntie Sam who she was absolutely buzzing to call later. Lena smiled as she ate, she smiled as she spoke, she smiled as they tidied their plates into the sink. It felt like absolute domestic bliss until Annie bounded into the kitchen with her mother’s phone, telling her it was ‘making the beep’ in the living room. She turned impossibly more pale when she read the text on the screen. 

Hello, Lena. I won’t be visiting Annalise today, Imogen and I are taking a break from the city. Let her know that I said happy birthday, I’ll be back in the city soon and I will see her then. - Andrew

“I think we should leave now…” Kara started before she noticed the way Lena was trembling with rage. “What happened?” She asked tentatively. 

“Andrew. If I talk about it right now, I think I’ll cry so let’s just leave, okay?” Lena spoke calmly, so completely desperate to make her third birthday as perfect as it could be. Her deadbeat father would not get in the way of that for her. 

“Whatever you need… Come on, Annie! I heard there’s a cake waiting at my sister’s house for you!” Kara called, giving Lena a supportive squeeze to her hand, not pressing the matter any further as they all left and bundled into Lena’s car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is part one of the long recovery and forgiveness process. I kind of tried to trap them in a situation to force them to talk when Annie came in the room because, in my head, Lena would be too stubborn to forgive her otherwise.  
> as always, any suggestions, go to my tumblr and hit me up on @/illegally-luthor.  
> thank you for reading, commenting & leaving kudos,
> 
> Lu xox


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of Annie's birthday! Apologies in advance but I haven't had time to proofread this...   
> Hope you enjoy

Lena fidgeted the whole drive, her left eyebrow twitching, rolling her necklace between her right thumb and forefinger as she steered her car. It was another aspect of the woman’s life that she wasn’t quite used to, normally she’d fly places but being able to sit in the passenger seat of a G-Wagon was definitely a more luxurious way to travel. 

She reached a hand over the center panel of the car, the feeling of rejection drowning her as Lena once again pulled away from her touch. She knew that last night wouldn’t have resolved everything that she had done wrong, but she couldn’t help thinking that Lena might be open to a little more help.

“When do I turn?” Lena asked, her voice cold until she registered Annie’s chubby cheeks in the back seat.

“Next left and then left again, it's the third building on the right, you can park out front.” Kara spoke as if she cas giving orders, but her eyes were gentle and her hand remained on the center console for Lena to take should she want to.

Lena thanked Kara again as they got out of the car, moving to the back door to pluck Annie out of her dinosaur-print car seat - the one that she insisted she absolutely ‘must have’. She set her on the floor, so proud of her when she held up a hand for Lena to hold, something she was taught from as soon as she could stand as soon as she could stand by herself. Lena refused to have her running into the road and getting herself hurt. The three-year-old was bouncing excitedly on her toes, her feet tucked into little back boots, her brown hair in two braids falling just over her shoulders. 

“You are the cutest little thing I have ever seen! Gosh I love you so much!” Lena squeezed her baby almost a little too tight, feeling truly grateful to have been blessed with such a perfect daughter. She wasn’t one to believe in fate, but there was nobody else in the world that fit into her life better than Annie had. 

“Do we see Sammie?” Annie asked, one hand playing with Lena’s necklace and the other one clutching to her beloved hippo.

“Not today, today we get to see Alex, Kelly and Scarlett.” Lena booped her nose, and thankfully the tiny girl just shrugged with the excitement of meeting new people. She had always been a social butterfly, thriving in situations with kids her age. Kara pulled a key out of her pocket and unlocked the door, letting herself in and motioning for the duo to follow her inside. She was shocked to see how well Kara got along with her sister - after all, even when she was on good terms with Lex, they would have never been intimate with each other.

“Kara! Hey, it’s so good to see you.” A woman with long, chocolate coloured hair approached and pulled Kara into a hug. Instantly, Lena felt miles out of her comfort zone and had to remind herself how she was doing all of this for Annie. “And you too, Lena, Kara’s told us both so much about you.” She smiled, pulling Lena into a hug as well, the pale woman obliging rigidly. 

“Thank you for having me over…” Lena halted when she realised that she didn’t know the woman’s name, she knew it had to be either Alex or Kelly, but she had never met either of the women.

“I’m Kelly, this is my wife, Alex.” She pointed over to a staggeringly tall brunette with short, dyed-red hair. “And this little munchkin is Scar!” She practically radiated happiness when the chubby girl toddled towards her. She looked nothing like either of the women, with freckled skin and fire-engine-red hair. 

“She’s absolutely adorable.” Lena gushed. She was a baby, Lena could cope with babies, she enjoyed the idea of social interaction with people who couldn’t judge her, she had let Kara in and that had been a mistake. All she wanted from today was to give Annie an exciting third birthday.

“So is your little girl!” Kelly knelt down next to Annie who was rocking between her heels and her toes. “I hear you’re three today, Annie!” Kelly pinned another badge on her shirt and led her inside, introducing her to her own daughter. 

Lena let all of the conversation continue around her as she tried to take in the apartment. It was almost the exact opposite of what she would have expected from someone in Kara’s family. The floors were all dark hardwood and the walls were all neutral, there were mainly photographs of the couple and their daughter as decorations, and there were a few baby toys scattered around, mimicking her own house in that aspect. It all felt really homely, though, there were blankets and cushions and a few piles of laundry which didn’t create a mess, so much as making the house seem like it was fit for living in. 

“Lena! Hi, it’s so great to meet you!” Alex bounded over, taking the woman’s coat and laughing gently as Lena looked as though she was bracing herself for another hug. “Don’t worry, I’m not like my wife and sister, I don’t hug everyone I meet!” She laughed at herself again and led the nervous seeming Lena through to her living room. 

“So, Lena, Kara’s told us a lot about you, but what is it that you get up to over at your company?” Alex asked, handing over a glass of sparkling water to the billionaire. 

“Well, up until recently I’ve been patching Lex’s mistakes… not an easy task, he isn’t a good man.” Lena tried hard to prove that she wasn’t associated with her brother, she was as different from Lex as could be. “I just recently sold off my idea for an app for the blind, nobody would have downloaded something made by a Luthor.” She shrugged, keeping her main project under wraps. 

“Honestly, I don’t know why not! It’s obvious to anyone who has merely read about you that you’re not like your family!” Kelly groaned for effect as she spoke, diving into the bowl of chips on the table that Annie and Scarlett had already helped themselves to. 

“People have prejudices.” Lena spoke bitterly, giving a tiny glare in the way of her girlfriend. “Even when you least expect it.” So what if they had spoken last night, Lena was still angry, and she was allowed to be. She felt physically pained when Kara’s jaw tightened and she tried her hardest to not seem to be outwardly upset, simply muttering under her breath that she was so sorry.

“My sister was an idiot, she still is,” Alex addressed the elephant in the room, “But we can worry about that tomorrow, today is for birthday cake and a trip to the park!” 

“Cake?!” Annie brightened up at the word, looking towards Alex for validation. The woman nodded happily, picking up Scarlett who was getting moody and sleepy and cuddling her closely. 

“We got you a big chocolate cake! I heard that’s what three-year olds like to eat!” Alex opened the big white box on the table and Annie gasped, her tiny mouth falling open with both shock and excitement.

“Yes! I love choc-late and I had pancakes cuz I’m three now!” Annie chatted excitedly, peering over the edge of the tall box. “It look really yummy! Mommy pease?” She looked up at Lena with those massive, green, puppy eyes which were absolutely impossible to say no to. So impossible, in fact, that she obliged straight away, letting Alex cut a slice for all of them, Kara blatantly taking a slice twice the size of everyone else’s. 

“Are you sure you don’t want a slice, Lee?” Kara asked, noticing how she’d only had a bite of her pancake that morning and a mug of coffee. 

“Yeah, not all of us have crazy fast metabolisms.” Lena smiled, trying her hardest to crack a joke. Truth was, she felt too upset and angry to eat, her mind reeling over the idea that a man could be too busy to see his own daughter on her third birthday! How could he make her a promise that he would see her and then just ignore her on her special day? Lena’s whole life revolved around Annie, every little thing she did was for her little girl. Andrew never contributed a thing, opting solely to be the fun parent and exist in her life only when it suited his own selfish needs.

“Mommy has to!” Annie decided, curbing the momentary disagreement between the two women when she shoved a forkful of cake into her mother’s mouth. 

“Thank you so much, bug! It’s so yummy!” She giggled at the huge grin she was given in return for her praise of the cake. She talked and fed her daughter for a while, enjoying the company of Kara’s family as she had fit in with them surprisingly well. The conversations weren’t fixed, often flowing between talking about their daughters and talking to their daughters, bonding over their relationships to Kara and their love for their respective children. Lena was completely unprepared for one topic of conversation, however.

“Is daddy coming?” Annie asked as she looked up from her second slice of cake. She used those damn puppy eyes again, the ones that her mommy couldn’t possibly say no to… and yet she had no other choice.

“Not today, bug. Daddy is letting us have some time alone with Alex and Kelly! Isn’t that super kind of him?” She sat the irritable, sugar high, child on her knee, rubbing reassuring circles on her back. She couldn’t blame her for being upset over this, after all she was practically the queen of having terrible parents, she knew how horrible it must feel for her. 

“Can he come mommy?” She whimpered, well past her nap time and understandably sad that her dad wasn’t around for her. Despite Lena’s hatred for the man, the tiny brunette was in love with him. She loved his lack of rules and general safety, she loved that he let her eat anything she wanted to, she loved that he lived near the forest so she could play outside in the mud. What she didn’t see was how her mom would have to deal with the sugar highs and the scraped knees and the bathtimes when there were clumps of mud in her hair. 

“He can't be here today, he’s busy with something really important… but we have Kara and Kelly and Alex and even Scarlett!” She tried her hardest to slow the genuine tears of the little girl, she wanted her to be able to show her emotions, even if it meant that she wasn’t happy all the time. She had vowed to be honest with her baby and let her express whatever she needed to, whenever she needed to, even if that meant that she was crying herself to sleep mid-afternoon on her birthday.

Lena asked if there was a room she could put Annie down for a nap in, and took her through the corridors, tucking her into the spare bed. She looked so tiny in the adult bed and she couldn’t stop her heart from shattering when she realised how young she was to have to deal with such a terrible father. She didn’t care that her hands were shaking when she picked up her phone and dialed his number, she was numb aside from her anger, and she was going to make it known how much she hated him.

“Lena! I’m busy right now, can I call you back soon?” His irritated voice cracked over the line and she closed her eyes tightly to avoid screaming in front of her sleeping child. 

“It’s Annie’s third birthday today… is any time a good time or should I wait until you stop avoiding your daughter?!” She snapped, her fingers drumming on her thigh, her teeth snagging her lip as she waited for his response. 

“I have other things in my life too, I can see Annie when I get back home.” He groaned, making it sound as though having a daughter as perfect as hers was was an inconvenience to him. 

“Why is she not your priority?” She snapped viciously, “I don’t care how much you hate me! She loves you, god knows why, and I expect you to acknowledge her on her birthday!” 

“Look, I’m out with Martha right now… there’s nothing I can do.” 

“Stop acting like this is my fault! I expect you to facetime me tonight and try your absolute hardest to act like you aren’t the world’s worst fucking father! I can’t stand you!” She broke down as soon as she hung up the phone, not noticing how the door was cracked open and Kara stood there quietly. 

“I don’t want pity.” Lena mumbled, wiping her eyes, slightly embarrassed that she had acted like this in a near-stranger’s house. 

“Do you want a hug?” Kara asked, seemingly able to sense that Lena had needed some form of affection. Not that it was hard to tell, really, she was crying on her daughter’s floor as she slept. “Come here.” She sighed and held her so tightly against her chest.

“He’s such a dick, Kara. If Annie ends up anything like him I would hate it.” 

“You know better than anyone that who you are isn’t down to your family.” She spoke gently, trying to convey how much she trusted Lena. “You are so strong and beautiful and independent and Annie is already so much like you. You’ve proven a hell of a lot of people wrong, myself included, and I can’t wait to see how loving Annie grows up to be.” She moved a lock of dark brown hair from covering her green eyes and pressed a kiss to her forehead. 

“How can you calm me so much when I’m still so mad at you?” Lena let out a laugh which seemed so close to being genuine and fell into Kara’s embrace again as they left Annie in the room to finish her nap alone.

They went back into the living room, Kara excusing herself to make Lena a sandwich since she had been avoiding food all day. The raven haired woman made small talk with her girlfriend’s family, breathing a sigh of relief when Kara came back in to break the awkward silence. Despite feeling awkward around them still, Lena couldn’t deny the fact that Alex and Kelly were wonderful people. Kelly spoke a lot about her work, clearly passionate about helping those who were struggling with their mental health, and Lena listened intently. She had tucked herself into Kara’s arms but was asking animatedly about the technologies that she was using to treat PTSD. 

“That honestly sounds incredible, I would love to see the work that you do.I’m more of the kind of person to put in the research behind the scenes, but I think it's incredible to have the skills to be able to treat people first hand.” Lena explained, always conscious that her people skills may not be entirely up to scratch since she was raised in a house of loveless sociopaths. 

“If you can say, what are you researching currently?” She asked, pouring herself a glass of wine as the afternoon slowly melted into the evening. Alex was upstairs playing with both of the girls and Lena found it insane for her to have trusted someone so quickly. She just got this unexplainable ‘born to be a mother’ vibe from Alex and she knew that her daughter would be in great hands with her. 

“I can’t go into detail, security reasons and such, but it’s actually all in an attempt to cure cancer.” She held back the sad sigh that was threatening to leave her lungs. “I lost my mother to cancer when I was four and I always wondered how my life might have been if she was able to be around for me… I want to do it for other kids like me. It’s dumb but… I don’t know,” Lena almost cried but focussed on steeling her upper lip, she reserved one day a year to cry over her mother, the anniversary of her death, after all, there was no point in her being sad all of the time over something she never could have changed. 

“Lena! That’s absolutely incredible.” Kelly’s mouth turned up at the corners with a proud smile, something Lena hadn’t seen from another person in a long time. “Have you made any notable progress? I know these things can take years before you can even see a change.” 

“Minor changes, actually, like I said, the details are confidential but I definitely have a few plausible ideas.” She nodded, grateful to have a kind of friend who understood the basics of science. She didn’t feel like she was boring Kelly and Kelly herself was incredibly impressed with the raven-haired billionaire. 

They spent their evening there, Alex and Kelly sipping their wine over the takeout that they had ordered, Annie and Scarlett getting along with one another like a house on fire. They got a phone call from Sam at four o’clock which, to no surprise on Lena’s behalf, started with herself and Ruby singing Happy birthday to their favourite cousin and niece. It was the cutest thing she had ever seen and it made her even more excited to reconnect with Sam after she returned from the city. After it turned seven o’clock, she could tell Annie was fading quickly, whinging as toddlers did in their tired states. She thanked them for the wonderful day, actually surprised to have found herself enjoying such a low key celebration with people who seemed to genuinely care whether or not they were happy. 

“You’re welcome here anytime! You too, Annalise!” Alex spoke between the two of them, receiving thanks from the grateful mother and exhausted toddler. “And if Kara ever says something dumb again, text me and I’ll break her neck!” She added in a whisper as they walked out of the door, quickly handing her the phone number that she had scribbled down on a scrap piece of paper. 

“Kara! Up!” Annie whined, wanting to be close to the woman that she had met nearing six months ago. The blonde and the brunette had grown close quicker than Lena had expected and it was downright adorable. 

“How can I say no to my favourite birthday girl?” She took her from her mommy’s arms and snuggled her all the way to the car before strapping her into the seat that she still looked adorably tiny in. “You comfy?” She asked, not receiving any response as her head lulled against her chest, her eyes closing and giving in to her body’s demands for sleep. 

“Thank you for today.” Lena spoke as she drove, her voice once again unreadable. “It was so nice to have people around for Anns.” She accepted the outstretched hand, letting Kara further the movement and run her thumb over her knuckles. 

“I’ll always be here.” The blonde said with sincerity.

“You can’t promise that.” 

“I can’t promise anything, but I know that if anything comes between us, I’ll always fight to have you by my side.” 

“You don’t know that you always will!” Lena sighed with exasperation, shutting off her engine as she pulled into the driveway.

“Rao! I will, always!” Kara got out of the car, shutting the door behind her. 

“How can you be so sure of something?” The brunette walked around to Kara’s side of the car and leaned against it.

“Because I love you!” Kara blurted out, quickly turning and pacing once she said it, realising how much she had revealed. It had been a minute, a full minute and Lena still hadn’t responded. 

“You know I can’t say that back… you hurt me.” 

“I know I did, but I can’t help how you make me feel, Lee.” 

“It took you saying all of that shit to me to make me realise, I’m not scared to get my heart broken.” She spoke sincerely, placing her hand on Kara’s waist as a deterrent for her pacing. “A little bit of pain means nothing when someone like you could mean so much to me.” She said what she needed to say. Maybe she wasn’t in love with Kara, but she could be. They could work on themselves together, she didn’t need to learn to love the blonde, she needed to learn to forgive her enough to be able to express her love.

“Can I kiss you?” Kara asked, her hands winding around the shorter woman’s waist. Lena closed the gap wordlessly, pressing their lips together. It was a gentle kiss but it conveyed so many emotions. So much love and want and trust, even a hint of forgiveness was on her lips. Lena broke off the kiss only to plant another on her cheek as a kind of compensation. 

“I have to put Annie to bed.” She sighed, genuinely hating to break up their moment. “Then I have a phone call to make to her father.” She rolled her eyes as she carried the sleepy toddler inside the mansion, a blanket draped over her tiny body.

“Let me know what he says?” Kara asked. She knew that there was nothing she could do to have Lena fully forgive her, but that didn’t mean that she would stop being there for her at all time. 

“I’ll text you… the bastard was meant to call to wish her a happy birthday… but I think she had a pretty happy day without him.” She kissed her tiny head, taking a step inside the house and going to close the door. 

“He sucks, Lee! Don’t blame yourself.” She flashed one of her absolutely perfect smiles that Lena couldn’t help but return. “See you soon?” She asked, receiving a nod from her girlfriend before the thick, wooden door swung closed. 

Lena made her way upstairs and tucked Annie into her bed, pressing three kisses to her forehead, finding it hard to believe that what was once a single cell was now her incredibly inquisitive three year old daughter. “You are the absolute love of my life, baby.” She kissed her hair one final time for good measure, deciding that bathtime could wait until tomorrow when she was a little bit more awake.

When she had settled into her bed she tried to call Andrew, reaching his voicemail three times and taking a screenshot just in case she ever had to use it for evidence against him. She took a deep breath before texting Sam and Kara, flicking on a movie - which wasn’t a cartoon about horses or dinosaurs - and relaxing. 

Samantha! We are going on a lunch date when you come back! I’m paying and you’re not getting out of this no matter how hard you try, I have many important things to tell you. I love you lots, give Ruby a kiss from auntie Lena from me, I miss my favourite five year old. - L

Hey, Kar. Deadbeat dads are the worst! He won't even answer his phone anymore. Thank you again for today, it really meant a lot to me when we spoke earlier. I’ve missed being close to you, hopefully we can organise that lunch date soon? I know Annie misses you too. - L x

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, hit me up on tumblr if you want (@/illegally-luthor)!  
> Thanks for reading, comments, suggestions, kudos etc...  
>  Lu xox


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! once again, I haven't had the chance to proofread this... I'm sorry!!!

As usual, work was overwhelming for Lena. She had back to back meetings, meaning that Sam was usually responsible for picking Annie up from daycare, something she loathed not being able to do for herself. She was exhausted from labs, her hands violently burnt and her brain fried from all of the extra research she was putting in, so close to making a break. It had been two weeks straight of catching up after taking off just one day for Annie’s birthday, but it was worth it to be able to watch her little girl smile so widely. 

She was perched at the edge of her seat as she read over a four-hundred-page report that had been left for her to study by an old friend, Jack. So busy with her work, she barely registered the gentle footsteps into the room, accompanied by the sweet smell of food, only looking up at the sound of someone clearing their throat. 

She focussed her eyes on her girlfriend standing in the doorway, frowning when she realised that all of the lights were off except her own. She couldn’t help realising how beautiful Kara looked in the shadow of the doorway, her attention instantly honing in on her beautiful, yet concerned, smile. 

“Sam called and said you weren’t picking up, and I hadn’t heard from you all day.” Kara walked over to her desk, gently pulling the report from her hands. “Is everything okay?” 

“Where’s Annie?” Lena panicked, reaching for her phone which opened up to a picture of Annie cuddling up to Ruby in Sam’s bed. She had been promised that Annie was okay and that she would take care of her until tomorrow, but she owed her a babysitting favour in the future, something that Lena knew she would never say no to anyways, she loved Ruby almost as if she was her own. 

“Are you okay?” She asked again, running her thumb over the scars on the back of Lena’s hand. “You never did tell me what these are about.” She brushed her lips over them, pulling the brunette over to the couch next to the coffee table where the food was set out for her. 

“They’re nothing, just from the drug trials.” Lena nodded, her eyes flickering back to the report that she had barely made a dent in. “You brought dinner?” She eyes the bags hungrily, only noticing now how she hadn’t eaten since dinner last night.

“Asian food, I bought ramen and potstickers… it’s my favourite so it’s only natural that you have to try it!” She spoke though her wide smile. There was nothing Kara loved more than introducing her girlfriend to the things that she loved. Their relationship had been slowly getting back to normal, often spending long nights talking over their own insecurities over the phone until one of them fell asleep. 

“You’re an angel.” Lena moved closer to Kara, reaching over to the report so that she could read whilst she ate. 

“You should think about going home soon, I can come with you if you want?” Kara asked her, running her hands through the dark hair falling against her chest. Lena didn’t respond, barely hearing her as she flicked through the pages, absentmindedly chewing through her fourth potsticker. Kara let out a rather sizable sigh and tightened her hug on her girlfriend, practically begging for her attention. 

“Kar, please, I need to get this done.” She groaned, visibly exhausted. Her eyes were drooping partially as she resumed her monotonous task of reading the report, scribbling something in the top corner that Kara was sure she would never be able to understand. She obliged and let Lena continue reading over her work, loving how cute she looked in her glasses. In the comfort of their own homes, Kara never wore her glasses, loving how she was able to show her true identity around the people that she loved. Lena, on the other hand, only wore her glasses when she was pretty much alone, opting to wear contacts during the day.

“How about, you drive us back to yours and we can cuddle for the rest of the night?” Kara asked when Lena seemed to have stopped eating. By this point, it had just passed nine o’clock and Kara had messily braided her girlfriend’s usually sleek hair into one messy braid down her neck and back. “Your hair looks fantastic, by the way.” Kara added with a smirk.

“Oh god! You’ve been here for hours! I didn’t mean to keep you waiting.” Lena turned around a bit and kissed her on the lips, it seemed to be falling into place again, Kara was repeatedly going out of her way to do things for the other woman, and there was no way she could stay mad at her through all of that, it just wasn’t fair. “Come back to mine? Annie will be back tomorrow, and if you don’t have anything for work we could go on that lunch date we keep ignoring?” She laughed nervously, Kara had always been the one to ask her out, so this was a little out of her comfort zone.

“That sounds perfect.” Kara sighed, her stomach settling in content when she saw Lena make her way towards her desk to pack up her things, not so sneakily tucking her report into her back so that she could get back to it later. “I can call the driver around if you want?” She asked and Lena nodded in response, taking Kara’s warm hand to lead her downstairs.

They got home soon after and Lena tried her best to tidy what was obviously on show before Kara made it in from the driveway. She was just picking up a box of coloured pens that were scattered over the floor when she heard the tap running just across the room from her as Kara poured them each a glass of water. “Want snacks or anything?” Kara asked and the question made her feel all mushy. She loved seeing Kara so comfortable around the house, comfortable enough to ask if Lena had wanted anything from her own kitchen.

“If you could get me Barry’s tea, then I’d happily take it, but I’d rather just have you snuggle with me.” Lena patted the seat next to her and Kara looked as though she was contemplating the idea of sitting down.

“I could get you some, if you wanted me to?” She asked nervously. Sure, she had used her powers before to visit Lena but she had never done something as extravagant as flying to a whole other country for her girlfriend. She would do it in a heartbeat though, anything to prove to her how much she really cared. 

“Fly to Ireland? Don’t you think that’ll take a long time, babe?” Kara instantly shook her head, explaining how she could be there and back within half an hour, depending on the queues in order to buy the tea, but Lena just patted the seat next to her again. 

“It’s really not a problem, honestly!” Kara got ready to fly, only stopped when Lena almost pulled her to the couch.

“I’m not mad at you, baby, we fought two months ago. Look, you said some unsavoury things, but from that day, all you’ve done is show how much you care for me. I was hurt, and you knew, but you showed me how much we have changed as a couple, how much love you have for me despite what we’ve been through, and you’re ridiculously caring. Possibly too caring for your own good.” She pulled the Kryptonian against her chest, feeling so proud yet protective of the girl in her arms. “I love you too, and having my favourite tea won't change that, no matter how good it is!” 

Kara pulled back from the hug, her eyes wide and full of adoration, “You love me?” She couldn’t seem to process the news, her head spinning and her stomach filling deliciously with butterflies. 

“How could I not?” Lena moved herself forward, kissing her gently, smiling so happily against her lips. “You’re smart and so so so funny, not to mention you’re literally drop-dead gorgeous.” 

“You, Lena Luthor, were made for me. I had to travel through galaxies to meet you, but I wouldn’t turn back for anything.” Kara mentioned Krypton. She talked about it often but Lena didn’t ever seem to know much, despite her brother’s infatuation with the destroyed planet. 

“Tell me about Krypton?” She asked, switching their positions so that she was the one to lay against Kara. As much as she hated to admit it to other people, she was definitely the little spoon, just wanting to be held by Kara at any possible opportunity…who could blame her.

“Well… oh Rao, you don't even know my parents’ names.” She pressed her head into her hands and sighed deeply. “My mom is- my mom was called Alura and my dad was Zor-El.” She explained, loving how Lena gave her her full attention, seemingly hanging off of every word that her girlfriend spoke.

“Isn’t that your surname? Kara Zor-El?” 

“Yeah, on my planet, we would all take our father’s name as our surname, or if you married, their name could become your surname. My mom was Alura In-Ze before she became a Zor-El.” 

“I find it hard to believe that you grew up in such a different place.” Lena let one of her arms drape across Kara’s body, pulling her into a close hug.

“I left when I was ten, I was sent here to protect Clark, but I got lost in space for a few years.” Kara sniffled a little, prompting Lena to wipe her tears away, pressing soft kisses where the salty trails were left. “My whole family, besides Clark, died… but I have this hologram of my mother… it’s not the same as meeting her but she has the same knowledge even if she is more of a computer…” Kara rambled nervously.

Lena cuddled her even closer, fascinated by the technology but mostly glad that Kara still had a connection to the whole world that she left behind. “Do you think I could meet her one day?” 

“You’d want to? She’s not exactly able to hold much of a conversation.” Kara tried to shrug it off, but Lena could see through the facade. The bright blue eyes lit up in a way similar to how they did when she was presented with takeout, her lips fighting against their instinct to break out in her award-winning smile. 

“She’s a part of your life, I would love to meet her in any way that I can.” She pressed a kiss to Kara’s neck, enjoying the way that it made her shudder. The girl of steel pretty much melted under her touch, it made her feel so powerful, but it was a power she was sure that she would never abuse. 

“If you don’t want me to take you up to bed, I suggest that you stop right now!” Kara giggled, respecting how Lena had always told her how she had wanted to wait for their first time together. In all honesty, she was nervous to mention it to Kara, but she wasn’t sure how she felt about having sex ever since Annie was conceived. The closest she had gotten was the night before Annie’s birthday when they were both angry with one another. 

“How about we just go up and cuddle? I’m exhausted.” Lena sighed sleepily, setting her glasses on the coffee table and going up to her room with Kara trailing behind her. They spent all of the night just talking with one another, enjoying how they never seemed to get bored in each other’s company, especially now when there was no tension left between them. 

When Lena woke up the next morning, she wasn't entirely sure when she went to sleep, but the bed was empty next to her. She groaned and went to make her way downstairs when she heard people talking. It was almost eleven o’clock, meaning that Annie had already been brought home, meaning either Kara was alone with Annie, or Sam and Ruby were still here. 

“Mommy! I missed you!” Annie jumped from the floor and bounded over to her mother, clinging happily to her legs for a brief minute before running off to finish playing her game with Ruby, not even staying long enough for her mother to reply. 

“Sleep well, did you, Lena?” Sam smirked and Lena groaned inwardly, checking that the children weren’t listening before she responded. 

“None of your business! But we didn’t… y’know… if that’s what you mean.”

“She was too tired after work, I take it?” Sam directed the next question to Kara who already seemed so comfortable in the company of her best friend. 

“Out like a light as soon as her head hit the pillow! It took me a while to realise she’d fallen asleep and I was just talking to a pillow!” Kara teased the woman, leaning up from her place on the couch to kiss her good morning. 

“Lee, I hate to be cheeky but I only really stayed to ask you a favour.” Sam grinned, biting her lip almost nervously as she looked towards Annie and Ruby.

“You want a babysitter?” She giggled in return. Kara beamed at how the two of them interacted, so completely and utterly comfortable with one another that they barely had to talk to understand what each of them was trying to say, in a way it had reminded her of her relationship with Alex. 

“I may or may not have met a man… he wants to take me out for drinks.” She blushed the colour of her favourite wine as Lena agreed to take Ruby for a night next week, so excited to see Sam trying to be happy for herself rather than just for Ruby’s sake. 

The trio talked for the better part of an hour, Kara fitting herself effortlessly into the conversation, before Sam called Ruby to the door. The girl was downright adorable and Lena loved her ferociously, making the reluctant child hug her so tightly before she even thought of letting her leave her house. They all said goodbye, as they did so she slipped Ruby a ten dollar bill with a wink, telling her to buy something fun from the gift shop of the museum that she knew they had plans of going to tomorrow. 

After they had left, Lena set about making them all something to eat for lunch, adoring how she was interrupted half way through by her girlfriend carrying her daughter. It was so lovely to have someone who just wanted to be around her when she did things as mundane as cooking. She set a split plate in front of Annie, a section with strawberries, a section with some peanut butter on toast, and a section with broccoli.

“How do you get her to eat better than me?” Kara chuckled, tucking into the leftovers from last night whilst Lena bit into the salad she had made for herself. 

“She likes veggies, I guess, I let her have treats every so often and she likes it… plus she’s realised the correlation between too much sugar and not feeling her best so she’s happy to eat her broccoli!” Lena explained, rolling her eyes as Kara shovelled her tenth potsticker into her mouth.

“Mommy? Is Kara like Sammie?” Annie asked, picking up a strawberry and chewing on it happily, not noticing the mess of food that was spread across the table in front of her… toddlers were so oblivious to mess… apparently, they weren’t oblivious to their mother’s dating situation. 

“How do you mean, bug?” Lena asked anxiously, swallowing the small lump in her throat as Kara squeezed her knee reassuringly. 

“Is she my auntie?” 

“Well, bug…” Lena looked to Kara for her approval, only continuing when she saw her nod, a giddy smile gracing her lips. She hadn’t expected to be introduced to Annie so quickly in this way, but she was excited nonetheless to start this new chapter of being open to Lena’s baby. 

“Kara is a little bit different to aunt Sammie because she’s my girlfriend. That means that we kiss and cuddle and she might have a lot of sleepovers here sometimes, if that’s okay with you?” 

Annie seemed to ponder over this for a moment, staring down Kara in the exact way that her mother had when they first met. 

“Yes! Kara is my friend!” Annie proudly announced, seemingly excited by the idea that she could be staying over for more sleepovers. It seemed funny to the women that they were nervous of what a three year old might think of their relationship, but when said three year old is the most important person in one of their lives, her opinion really mattered. 

They continued eating in blissful silence once again before Annie, in all her curious toddler glory, interrupted them. “Is Kara daddy now?” She asked innocently, causing Lena to choke on the tomato she had just popped into her mouth, Kara’s eyes going wide at merely the statement. 

“Baby, why would you think that? You have a daddy already.” Lena didn’t want to insult him in front of Annie, wanting her to have an untainted memory of the man despite her absolute hatred for him. 

“Is daddy coming?” She asked in the same way she had been asking every day since her birthday and Lena felt her heart plummet through her stomach, her hand gripping the table so tightly her knuckles turned white. 

“Maybe not for a while, baby, but mommy will always be here.” She spoke but Annie still wasn’t convinced, shaking her head as if the idea of only one parent was unsatisfactory to her. 

“No! I want daddy!” She whines, on the verge of a tantrum that Lena knew she couldn’t be blamed for, shit parents caused shit moods, it was something she was all too aware of. 

“How about I call him now and see if he can speak to you, huh, Annie-bug?” She pulled her out of her seat and settled her into her lap. She desperately wanted to raise her alone, but she couldn’t deny the girl her father when he was available to love her, she just had to weigh up now if it was causing her more harm than good. Her father’s absence was taking up a good portion off their conversations nowadays. 

Much to her surprise, Andrew picked up the phone, grunting a hello at her as Annie grabbed at her phone to see who it was and if it was really her beloved father. 

“Before you say anything too exciting, Annie-bug is here to talk to you!” Lena spoke immediately, not wanting him to start a fight in front of their daughter. She was eternally grateful for Kara who brought her a glass of water and Hippy, placing a hand on her lower back as if she was trying to save her from crumbling under the weight of the world. 

“Annalise. I haven’t seen you in a while, you’re so big now!” He tried to sound enthusiastic, obviously putting on a show for his girlfriend who had wanted to see him in action as a father. 

“Yeah! I’m three!” She held up two fingers which her mother quickly corrected, gently encouraging her to count to three so she could learn for next time. 

“That’s cool, huh.” He didn’t try to entertain her, he didn’t try to be any kind of parent, he just didn’t want to be known as the man who abandoned his baby.

“Will you come?” Annie asked, fidgeting a little as if preparing herself for disappointment. She brought the hippo up to cover her face a bit, taking her spare hand and bringing her thumb into her mouth for comfort. 

“Not now, Annie, I’m very busy. But, I got a dog the other day and I’m sure you can meet him soon.” He nodded, guessing that children often liked animals so that was a safe bet for conversation. 

“She’s allergic.” Lena scoffed, rolling her eyes but keeping steady with the pressure of Kara’s hand on her back. 

“Oh… well we can do something then… I have to go now, Annalise. Love you!” He went to hang up straight away, not even giving his daughter a chance to reply. She looked at Kara sadly, the woman mirroring her pout slightly.

“Tell you what, Annie, I bet mommy will let us have a cookie if we ask her really nicely!” Kara whispered loudly enough for Lena to hear and stop her if she was crossing boundaries. Instead, the woman obliged, telling Annie she could have a cookie if she promised to go down for a nap afterwards, a promise which she kept after a warm glass of milk as well. 

The baby monitor was on and the couple had settled in the living room after cleaning the kitchen. Lena was laying in an armchair and Kara was splayed out across the couch, both of them avoiding speaking until Lena finally broke the silence. 

“I hope you know how much I hate that man…” She complained, snapping the book shut that she was reading. 

“If its any consolation, I hate him too.” She shot Lena a pitying look which she was happy to accept. “I hate how much her hurts you both, it’s terrible… if he tries to take you to court like before… I know you’d win.” She didn’t want to bring it up but it felt like something Lena could benefit from hearing. 

“You really think so?” She sighed, dropping the novel to the floor.

“Of course you would… you’re practically super-mom!” Kara smiled so sincerely that despite all of the pain, she knew that falling in love was the best thing that she had ever done. It was time for her to start enjoying life a little more, taking Annie to new places and taking Kara to fancy cities. She wanted a normal life and she had found the person that she wanted to have that life with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I've finally figured out how I want this story to go & how I want it to end so that's v exciting!!  
> I hope y'all enjoyed & thank you for the comments and kudos
> 
> lu xox


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the fluff ensues! I low key love this chapter, they just seem so natural around each other, I don't know.  
> I took in some suggestions and altered them a little to fit the story so I hope you enjoy!!

“How about you pick out a pair of shoes to wear, bug?” Lena pressed a kiss to Annie’s head before the tiny girl bounded up the stairs and out of sight in search of her favourite, sparkly sneakers. She had planned to take Annie to the park for a picnic as a sunday treat, and her daughter had begged Kara to come too. She was just fixing her hair in the mirror after Annie had messed when she was cuddling her earlier, when the doorbell rang. Lena opened the door, amused by the fact she could hear Annie hurrying excitedly upstairs in order to come down and see Kara more quickly.

“Hey! You look beautiful.” Kara greeted, pulling Lena in instantly for a kiss which was gratefully accepted on smiling lips. She took a moment to take in Lena in all of her glory. She wasn’t wearing makeup today and her usual pantsuits had been swapped out for a pair of dark mom jeans and a flannel. Her long hair was slightly curled and draped over one shoulder and she was wearing sneakers with a thick platform in an attempt to be closer to Kara’s height.

“I think my girlfriend is prettier.” Lena hugged her so closely, loving how she felt every time she saw Kara. They saw each other on a near-daily basis at this point, but every time she locked eyes with her girlfriend, the butterflies erupted in her stomach and her heart worked overtime - something Kara was secretly quite proud of when she heard her heart rate quicken.

“Who’s your girlfriend?” She sounds like a lucky woman.” Kara teased, her hands wrapping tightly around Lena’s waist from behind as she turned towards the stairs in search of Annie. 

“I’m the lucky one, my girlfriend is like this alien supermodel.” She stopped talking when Kara erupted in laughter, the sound only comparable to what Lena would imagine sunshine to sound like. She cut off the laughter with a deep kiss, their lips moving in sync with one another as Lena’s hands found themselves deep in Kara’s golden hair. Kara so desperately wanted to pick her up from where they were standing and carry her through to the bedroom, but she knew she couldn’t right now, instead settling for pressing open mouthed kisses down her girlfriend’s neck. She smirked at the unmistakable sound of Lena’s heart beating eagerly against her ribs, knowing she would be making fun of her right now if her heart wasn’t doing the exact same thing. 

“Mommy! Do my laces!” A tiny voice interrupted them, Kara leaving her girlfriend’s neck with a grumble of irritation as Annie stumbled over her laced and into the hallway by the front door. 

“What do you say, bug?” Lena scolded her lightly, smiling inwardly at how caring she was with her daughter, something she had never experienced with Lillian growing up. 

“Do my laces, pease.” She smiled cheekily, holding up the two sparkly sneakers. She looked so proud to have found the shoes all by herself as her mother secured them to her feet, helping her stand up with a kiss to her forehead. 

“Annalise! Look how grown up you look today!” Kara gasped, genuinely feeling a little sad about how mature she looked. When she first met her, she was a babbling two year old and now the little girl was well into her threes. She stood to the height of Kara’s mid thigh and wore a Supergirl t-shirt and leggings. “Is that Supergirl on your shirt?” Kara poked her chest and she giggled nervously as she always did when people spoke to her about her interests.

“Annie’s a big fan of the girl of steel.” Lena held out her hand for Annie to take as they started walking to the park, almost overwhelmed when she held out her other hand for Kara to hold as they walked (the blonde took it eagerly, the prize-winning smile never leaving her face).

“Mommy putted her on the tv!” Annie exposed her mother eagerly, letting Kara in on their little secret about how often they had watched her saving the day. Lena couldn’t help it, it was the curiosity and fear or not knowing what Kara really did when she saved the word, but it was also the intense attraction she felt when she saw her doing the things that nobody else could do. She couldn’t help it! Her girlfriend could carry planes, there was something incredibly attractive and terrifying about that.

“Mommy watches Supergirl a lot, huh?” Kara switched so she was smirking at her girlfriend, flattered that she would be watching her on television when she wasn’t spending time with her. Kara herself had actually been guilty of watching scientific live streams in the hope of catching her girlfriend in her element. 

“Well, she’s a good role model, it’s pretty cool to see a girl saving the day.” Lena smiled proudly between her two girls. That’s exactly what Kara was for their family; an outstanding role model. She was always positive and level headed around the house, even eating healthily in front of Annie. When she was out as Supergirl, she was the kind of role model that every kid needed, showing that girls could do anything that boys could do, sometimes even better than boys could, but never relying on the help of others. 

“She’s cool.” Annie admitted, her eyes flitting between the picnic blanket that they had laid out and the play area opposite them. She had pulled her lip between her teeth in the most adorable way as if it was the most important decision of her life: should she eat first or should she play first? 

“Sweetie, I made you lunch but I wasn’t sure what you’d want…” Kara opened a bag which she had made just for Annie, even going to the extent of cutting the grapes in half like she had seen her girlfriend do so many times before. It was the little things that made Lena fall deeper and deeper. 

Annie tucked into the bag of peanut butter sandwiches - with the crusts cut off, of course - and Lena started on her salad that Kara had made for her. She was surprised, really, she had never once seen a vegetable in Kara’s apartment but the salad looked like something that she would make for herself. She caught Kara’s eyes as she was eating, they were reflecting the sun in the most beautiful way, the normally clear blues had been filled with glimmers of gold. Her hair over her shoulder was the colour of sunshine itself and she had the most beautiful lines around her eyes where she was laughing at Annie’s toddler mischief. 

“I love you.” Lena spoke barely above a slight mumble, but, being a Kryptonian, Kara heard every word. She patted the blanket closer to her, melting a little as Lena edged closer to her, just enough to be wrapped in Kara’s arms.

“I love you more.” She kissed the top of her hair, the two of them just enjoying the peace under the tree, watching Annie run around as she threw sticks and rocks. “Annie is the sweetest.” 

“It’s really nice to have someone be around for her so consistently, I always get a little worried that Sam and I wouldn’t have been enough for her… it’s not really like she has any other family.” Lena scooted and laid down, her head resting in Kara’s lap. She wasn’t tense, she wasn't thinking about work, she was focussing on what was slowly turning into her family and she was loving how it all seemed to be fitting together. Her life was a puzzle, and up until now, it was missing the one piece that made the picture make sense. 

“I don’t think I’ll be leaving you any time soon.” Kara let her hand find placement on Lenas arm, dragging her blunt nails up and down the pale skin. “You both mean way too much to me.” 

“It means a lot to hear you say it.” She pulled Lena’s hand to her mouth for a kiss, whispering that she loved her once again before they fell into a comfortable silence. They let Annie go into the park since they were so close to it, making her promise that she would stay where they could see her and she would shout for them if any other adult came over to her. She was a smart little girl and she obviously understood what she was being told as she trotted happily over to the slides. 

The day was passing, filled with happy giggles and excited squeals from Annie as she proudly made her mother and her girlfriend watch her as she went down the slide for what must have been the hundredth time that day. Kara seemed to be getting nervous as the day was drawing to a close, twiddling the rings on her thumb. 

“Babe, are you okay?” Lena asked, sitting up and stretching out. All Kara could think about was the perfection that was Lena Luthor. Such a smart, yet gentle, soul. She was an incredible mother and a downright hero, not to mention jaw-droppingly gorgeous. 

“Hm? Oh yea, I was just- I want to-” 

“Breathe.” Lena ran her thumb over the back of her knuckles in an effort to calm Kara, all of her focus going to those beautiful blue eyes. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“It’s really dumb, I promise!” Kara giggled, seeming shy behind her confident smile. “Don’t laugh, I know this isn’t really your thing! I mean, that’s not a bad thing, I just- I like it, and I want you to be there…” She looked hopefully towards Lena who looked completely baffled. “Is that a no? I’m not offended, can you just tell me?” 

“Kar, sweetie, you never asked me anything.” She giggled, she loved her ditzy girlfriend. This is what it felt like to be in love. She could listen to her ramble all day, it didn’t even have to make sense, but it was still the most interesting part of her day.

“Oh- oh yeah, do you want to come to game night on friday?” Kara blurted, her fingers instantly going to fiddle with her rings again.

“You know I can’t say no to you.” Lena responded, kissing the corner of her mouth which had now spread into that addictive smile. “But, that doesn’t mean I’m not terrified to meet all of your friends!” 

“They’ll love you! You’ve met Alex, and she’s the hardest to impress! Plus, you’re literally perfect in every way, I’m the one who should be scared! Everyone will fall in love with you.” Kara giggled.

“Hmm… but if I run off with one of your friends, who’ll carry me home from my office?” They both shared a hearty laugh at that before something seemed to catch Lena’s attention. Her daughter wasn't anywhere to be seen. She stood up straight away, hoping that she could be seen as soon as she got a better angle on the place… that wasn’t what had happened though. 

“Kar, have you seen Annie?” She asked, feeling her throat catch in her chest and her breaths speeding up unhealthily. Her hands were instantly clammy and her head was spinning painfully. She knew as soon as she saw Annie, she would be okay… but she couldn’t see Annie.

“No, when did you last see her?” Kara rested her arm comfortingly around Lena’s shoulder, not surprised when she was shrugged off in favour of walking into the park. 

“Five minutes ago? When she went down the slide... “ She spoke shakily, her whole world crumbling around her. She wanted her baby in her arms, and she wanted her now. 

“Okay, I’m gonna use my powers, Lee, but when I focus on her heartbeat I won't hear you, so don’t freak out. I love you.” Kara spoke quickly and Lena just nodded, her face vacant as she continued to search around the park for the little girl. 

The search went on for less than five minutes, but for Lena it felt like a lifetime as she searched in every place she thought that she might be, scoffing in complete anger when she saw the paparazzi hiding out and watching the frantic search. To say she was relieved when she saw Kara carry Annie back to the picnic blanket would be an understatement. 

“My baby! Annalise Samantha Luthor, where did you go?!” Lena turned from relieved to angry in a heartbeat, how dare her daughter leave her sight, for all she knew, she could’ve been kidnapped!

“Mommy!” Annie sniffled, her face visibly tear stained and her little arms clinging so tightly to Kara that, had she not been a Kryptonian, she would have cut off circulation. “I falled and I got an ouchie.” 

“She was hiding out near the swings, she fell off when she was swinging and got this nasty cut.” Kara turned slightly so that Lena could see the scraped knees and cut on her leg. 

“You poor little thing, do you think we should go home now?” She asked Annie who nodded sadly and silently, burying her head into Kara’s neck. If it was anyone else, Lena would be offended that her cuddles were being overlooked, but she understood it. She understood the warmth and the overwhelming feeling of home that just radiated from Kara. Their things were packed up almost instantly, stressed mothers have the superpower of being able to do anything for their children incredibly quickly, and they started the walk home. Lena was silent the whole way, seemingly stuck inside her head and Annie simply whimpered the whole way. The cut wasn’t serious at all but it definitely didn’t seem to be pleasant. 

“How about I take a look at that cut of yours?” Lena tried her best to smile for her daughter, not wanting her to be scared. Sure, everything was completely fine now, but she was so shaken by what had happened earlier that it was taking its toll. 

“No, Kara.” She whined, still clinging to her mother’s girlfriend. Lena shot her a look as if she was asking if she would mind sorting it out and, much to her pleasant surprise, Kara instantly got started, finding the bandaids and antiseptic in the cupboards whilst Lena made a start on dinner. 

“Let’s see what doctor Kara can do for you!” She spoke animatedly, trying all of the tricks in the book to get her to smile. “Can you give my hand the biggest squeeze ever when I spray this on your cut? I think it will sting a bit, but I’m sure that you can do this!”

“Okay.” Annie’s face turned from upset to determined as she squeezed Kara’s hand tightly, instantly contorting in discomfort when she had sprayed. Kara couldn’t help the guilt that flooded her veins, she knew that the temporary sting of the antiseptic would be a hell of a lot better than the alternative of an infection, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t feel terrible about seeing Annie in pain.

“You’re such a strong little girl! I think I would have cried if I had the spray!” Kara continued to clean the cut. “You have an even more important job this time… you have to choose the perfect bandaid for it.” She handed over the box and Annie seemed to be deep in thought for a little while before she pulled out a purple bandaid with dinosaurs printed all over it. 

“Oh, that’s super cool! I happen to love dinosaurs…” Kara continued to talk with Annie, eventually taking her up to her room to help her change into her pyjamas. Once again, she chose the dinosaur print and Kara was learning quickly what her newest obsession was as she sat in the reading corner of Annie’s room to read her the newest book in her collection about all the different types of dinosaurs. They only stopped once they had been interrupted by Lena calling up the stairs to the two of them. 

“Dinner?” Annie asked excitedly, reaching up for Kara’s hand so that they could go down to the table together. They entered the kitchen hand-in-hand, Annie pulling a brave face despite her little limp. 

“Oh, who let you both be so cute?!” Lena scooped Annie into her arms for the cuddles that she had been missing out on. She squirmed and giggled as she was sat down at the table, scooting away once she had finished her food so that she could show her mommy how Kara had put the bandaid over her cut. She spoke for forever about the dinosaurs Kara had told her about and Lena couldn’t help but notice how her girlfriend was blushing over the compliments from the three year old. 

Kara gave them a little bit of space after dinner, letting Lena put her baby to bed by herself, opting to clean the kitchen as a thank you for the food. It wasn’t really a thank you for the food though, it was more of a thank you for being let into their lives, a thank you for being forgiven, a thank you for being allowed to love the two of them. 

She could hear Lena singing a lullaby to Annie, something that the woman swore she never did, so embarrassed by her singing voice that she had never sung in front of anybody else. The song ended and she could hear her kiss Annie and tell her that she loved her, she could almost picture the look of adoration on Lena’s face as she spoke to her daughter. 

“Kara Danvers!” Lena spoke in a sing-songy voice as she entered the living room. “You’re the absolute best person ever and I love you.”

“I’m not complaining, but this is unexpected.” Kara giggled as Lena laid her body over her girlfriend’s, flicking on the television to a rom-com that they loved to make fun of together. 

“I love you, and I didn’t know I could love someone this much until today. You’re really good with Annie.” She explained her happiness, playing with Kara’s fingers and loving how she could relax with the woman that she loved after a day out. 

“I love you too.” She smiled back, meaning every word. 

“Before I met you, I’d resigned myself to being alone.” Lena muttered, surprised to feel herself opening up in the way that she was. “I met Lillian when I was four and she abused me basically all of my childhood… Lex was my best friend but he- he turned and I got close with his old friends… they understood what it was like to grieve someone who was still alive. That’s how I met Andrew.” Lena took a deep breath, inhaling the scent that was just so Kara. It resembled something along the lines of cut grass and freshly baked bread; it was the smell of love and it was all encompassing. 

“Well, you’re safe with me.” Kara spoke gently, not wanting to interrupt too much as she sensed that there was more to this story. 

“Andrew used to say I was safe with him too, but I didn’t trust him in the same way I trust you. He never liked that I was gay, rich people never do… but he seemed to hate it even more with every time I talked about women.” She laughed, knowing Kara would understand what she meant, they often spent long nights watching movies and talking about their unrealistic crushes on the female leads. “He took matters into his own hands, ruined our friendship and got me pregnant. I stopped talking to him altogether but when Annie was born, he was desperate to meet her and I couldn’t deny her the chance to meet her father.” 

Kara carded her fingers through Lena’s silky hair. The brunette wasn’t necessarily sad, just recounting difficult memories which didn’t seem nearly as difficult when they were being shared with the woman who she was sure to be her soulmate.

“You’re doing great by Annie, you know that right? You aren’t responsible for Andrew being a dick, but you put your feelings aside to let her be happy around him. You’ve done so much for her by yourself, but you’re not alone anymore. I’m always going to be here to support you if you’ll let me.” Kara explained, she loved Lena and if she was being honest, she loved Annie. She had spent so much time around the little girl over the past eight months and she had got to know the both of them so well, she wouldn’t mind if her future looked exactly like this. 

“You think I’m a good mom? It’s just- I don’t have a role model to go off of, Lillian wasn’t exactly a top class mother, raising a serial killer and abusing her daughter.” She laughed, slightly bitter but still light, revelling in the compliment she had just received. 

“The best mom.” Kara promised her with a kiss

“We’re so lucky to have you, Kar.” 

“I’m the lucky one.” She laid down, noticing as Lena got sleepy. She waited for her to get comfortable again, their legs tangling, the brunette’s head resting on her chest, an arm wrapped around her waist in a protective cuddle. “I love you both.” 

“Maybe you should tell Annie that.” Lena admitted. “I think she would really love to know that she had another adult around who loves her.” 

Kara didn’t reply, instead she let the words sit on her tongue, ready to be the first thing she would say to Annie when she saw her next. She had the permission from Lena now, she was being let into the family and she couldn’t help but feel that she was fitting in better here than she had anywhere else. It didn’t take long before Lena’s breaths turned to snores and she took the two of them up to bed, only waking as the sun rose through the curtains. 

Kara made sure that breakfast was made early in time for Annie to wake up the next day and Lena couldn’t stop herself from crying when Kara served the sleepy toddler her food, telling her that she loved her. She wasn’t expecting much of a response, Annie had always been a little withdrawn around people who weren’t her aunt and her mother, so Kara was taken pleasantly by surprise when Annie threw herself into her lap.

“I love you too, Kara!” She squeaked, her eyes still a little heavy with sleep as she wrapped her chubby little arms around her neck and embraced her before turning back to her breakfast as if the situation was the most normal thing for her.

Kara was fitting in so well, Lena only hoped that she felt the same way when she introduced herself to Kara’s friends next week. No matter what happened then, she was always confident that nothing could beat the family she had created here. Annie was the best thing in her life and Kara came as a close second. With her girls, Lena was home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading!   
> hit me up on tumblr (@/illegally-luthor)  
> leave any comments & kudos that you please & I'll be very grateful.
> 
> lu xox


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really unhappy with this chapter... so I'm sorry about that
> 
> minor T/W for mentions of abuse, nothing too in depth at all (it's just after everyone leaves if you want to read the chapter but skip that part)

“Come over at five?” Kara asked sweetly through the phone as Lena sat with Annie in her office. She was playing with a fake computer next to Lena’s real one, one of the two girls mid way through some very important work. 

“I didn’t think game night was until seven?” Lena smiled as she spoke, eager to see Kara after having missed her all week. 

“Well, I was thinking, Annie could have the spare room tonight and she could stay up with us for pizza. I don’t want her to feel like she’s missing out all the time.”

“Dear god, Kara, I’m so in love with you… I’ll ask if she wants to come with me or see Sam tonight, but I’ll text you?” 

“Fantastic, whatever works for you both.” Lena couldn't help but feel like the luckiest woman alive every time that Kara spoke. “I have a case to work on now, I’m meeting the next family for court next week… I love you.” 

“I love you more.” Lena spoke, getting Annie’s attention and telling her Kara was on the phone. She squealed in the loudest voice that she could muster that she loved Kara and that was all the motivation Lena needed to finish her work day. Despite Annie’s adoration for Sam, she had jumped at the chance to go to Kara’s apartment tonight, even to the point where she had spent the whole walk to her apartment talking about how Kara gave the best hugs. 

“I love Kara so much.” Annie beamed, skipping up the stairs to the apartment she had only visited a few times. She loved it there, though, she loved the vibrancy and the fact that Kara had bought her some toys and pyjamas in the case that she might have to stay for the night.

“I love Kara a lot too, bug.” Lena agreed, letting Annie knock on the door of the apartment. Her little hands tapped against the door until the second it swung open and Kara’s beaming face was revealed. 

“Was that you? You knocked so loudly I thought it was your mommy!” Kara exclaimed, Annie taking the whole conversation as a massive compliment to her door-knocking skills. She ushered them both inside, Annie running to the living room floor and instantly opening her bag of toys until her hippo fell out of it. She picked it up and held it close to her chest before she started to stack her blocks.

“God, Lee, she’s the cutest ever.” She pulled Lena into a hug from behind so that they could both watch her play. “You smell amazing, baby, is it a new perfume?” 

“Mhm, something wildly expensive that I don’t know the name of.” She laughed and Kara laughed too. “You just smell like home.” Lena beamed as she spoke, she was so calm and so happy to be around the two of them. 

They settled on the floor with Annie after a while, Lena trying her best to teach her about how to create the best tower whilst Kara tried to encourage her to knock it down every time it started getting taller. They were acting more and more like a family every time they were together and Annie seemed to be picking up on it, going between Kara and Lena when she wanted things, not embarrassed to ask either of them questions. They were lost in their time with each other, Lena resting against Kara, Annie eventually making her way over to rest against Kara as well, mumbling that she was hungry and tired, normally going to bed by seven thirty. 

“Dinner is on its way, sweet pea, do you want to get some pjs on and then the pizza will be here?” She asked her and Annie nodded sleepily, reaching her arms out for Kara to carry her to get changed. Lena set about getting the plates ready for the guests, trying to remember how many people Kara had said were coming… it was definitely Alex… and there was Winn, maybe Nia, was Kelly coming or not? She took a deep breath and sighed, the nerves beginning to set in as the front door burst open. 

“Kara! I got the pizza from the guy in the lobby I’ll-” Alex started before noting Lena in the kitchen. “Lena, hi, where’s my sister?” 

Before she could answer, Kara walked back into the living space, Annie cuddling close to her on her hip, offering Alex a tired wave. Alex made a comment under her breath about Kara acting like Annie’s other mother that only Kara seemed to hear, accepting it with a bashful smile. 

“Look at that, we have pizza, sweet pea.” Kara took the vegan box from Alex, immediately going about feeding Annie. She sat her in her lap on the couch and cut up the slice, checking that Annie was enjoying what she was eating. “Alex can you let everyone else in when they get here! I’m busy with my little bestie!” 

“You’re too in love to deal with right now!” Alex rolled her eyes but nodded nonetheless, going to greet the rest of the guests. Lena sat next to Kara, her hand nervously finding her necklace to twiddle, she was about to meet everyone that Kara loved and if this didn’t go well, everything that they had built would have been for nothing

“You’re still in your head about this, huh?” Kara placed a hand on her girlfriend’s thigh, stroking her thumb over the soft skin exposed under her skirt.

“I just- I love you a lot, and I want your friends to like me… they mean a lot to you and I don’t want to mess this up.” She relaxed into Kara’s touch, melting a little further when her hand moved from her thigh to snake around her waist, pulling her into a tight cuddle. 

“Trust me, they’ll love you. I’m so in love with you, I can’t imagine anybody would ever feel differently.” 

“But I’m a Luthor.” Lena mumbled, still so unsure of herself. She had made the name as positive as she could but there was no way she could ease Lex’s crimes or his insanity, that stuck with her as if it was glued to her very soul. 

“You’re my Luthor.” She squeezed Lena closely as she heard the sound of her friends’ voices fill her apartment. “I love you.” 

Annie wiggled in between them as the room filled with Kara’s friends, and Lena wished she could do the same thing, able to escape with her seven thirty bedtime rather than sit awkwardly through conversations with people she so desperately had to impress. She took them all in, a tall brunette, her arm linked with a short man, his hair shoulder length, another man with a bright smile and short hair, and a woman with bright blue eyes and wavy blonde hair… her presence seemed to excite Kara more than anybody else. 

“Sara? Why didn’t you say you were coming tonight?!” Kara moved off the couch, trying not to disturb Annie as she ran towards the shorter woman. “You have to meet Lena!” 

“I’ve heard so much about you, I left the 1800s for this!” Sara laughed but Lena couldn’t quite make sense of what was happening… the 1800s?

“Oh, I’ve never even mentioned you to Lee, I didn’t think you’d ever get the chance to meet each other!” Lena just shook her head in confusion, slightly annoyed when Annie pushed herself from her lap to go and meet people with Kara. 

“Lee, come here, I need to introduce you to everyone!” She held her hand out and Lena took it, damning her clammy palms that Kara ignored. She was grateful that her girlfriend was so supportive of her social anxiety, it made it easier for her to deal with if she knew she had someone on her side. 

She went through the list of people, first was Nia who she introduced as a college friend, the girl was bubbly and all smiles, her hair long and dark and she seemed extremely welcoming, promising Lena that they could swap stories about Kara later on that night. Next was Brainy, Kara told her that wasn’t his real name but she would explain it later, he was a lot more matter of fact and Lena could see herself getting along well with him, appreciating his blunt honesty. Winn was introduced next, the man seemed boy-like, excited by the fact that Kara finally had a girlfriend and divulging the secret that Supergirl never stopped talking about going home and seeing her and Annie. Finally, she was given a formal introduction to Sara, a girl from their own era who happened to be the captain of a timeship alongside her girlfriend. 

They settled into the living room after they were all introduced, Lena still not saying much, blatantly nervous. Kara sat on the edge of the couch, picking out Catan for them to play, causing Winn to erupt into excited cheers about his favourite game being chosen. Lena didn’t know how to play, she looked around seeing everyone else with their faces presenting smiles, Nia and Brainy were sat on the floor and Sara, Alex and Winn were sat on the couch opposite them.

“Anyone want drinks? I’m gonna get myself a scotch.” Alex stood up whilst they set up their board game, everyone putting in their requests. Sara got a double, the same as Lena, and both women laughed over their tastes in strong alcohol. 

“What’s got you on the hard liquor?” Sara laughed and Lena raised an eyebrow as if she was asking if she really wanted to know. 

“Sister of Lex Luthor… what about you?” She shrugged, Scooting over slightly as Annie crawled to smush herself between Lena and Kara, laying her head sleepily against her mother’s girlfriend. 

“I died twelve times.” She took the glass from Alex and thanked her multiple times, Kara explaining in a whisper how they got drunk a few years ago and slept together before she had met Kelly, causing Lena to chuckle at the mere idea of them together.

Lena lifted Annie who had fallen asleep, despite trying her best to stay awake like all of the grown-ups were. She excused herself to Kara’s spare room to tuck Annie into bed, glad to be missing the start of the game that she had no idea how to play. Annie was out like a light so it didn’t take long before she was back to the living room, taking the whole glass of scotch in one gulp in an attempt to calm her nerves. 

Nia kept peeking over at Brainy’s cards, seemingly trying to get the upper hands, and Lena just looked around as if she was trying to figure out what she was meant to be doing. She was more than pleased when Kara lifted an arm, inviting her to cuddle and announcing to everyone that they would be playing as a team. 

“Bro! She must really like you! I’ve never seen her volunteer to play as a team before, she’s very protective over her title as Catan world champion!” Nia giggled, laying her head against a reluctant seeming Brainy. 

“I agree, girl you’ve got Kara whipped!” Winn cackled, making Lena blush at the thought of it. Now she thought, she realised how differently Kara acted around her friends, sure she was always soft, but it was nothing like the softness Lena saw. She suddenly felt such an intense surge of pride; nobody else in this room got to wake up next to Kara, their bodies entwined, nobody else got to listen to her sing so loudly as she cooked and nobody else got to kiss her and hold her the way that she could.

“I’m quite proud of it, I won’t lie.” Lena let herself giggle, confident now there was alcohol coursing through her blood, meeting with the love in her heart. “And I will admit, I have no bloody clue how to play this game!” She rested her hand on Kara’s thigh, smiling to herself when she flinched in the most slight but the most delicious way. 

“Woah, are you not american? You had such an accent then!” Sara raised her brows at Lena, setting out some counters and poking her tongue out at Winn, clearly getting the upper hand in the game in a way that she didn’t understand. 

“She’s Irish.” Kara placed something down completely absentmindedly, letting her mind wander to only thoughts of Lena. The brunette punctuated with a nod, kissing Kara’s cheek, causing Alex to clear her throat. The last time she had seen Alex, she wasn’t on great terms with Kara, but now she could see how overprotective her older sister was when she made a move towards Kara.

“That’s so cool! When did you move here?” Nia asked, clearly so interested in Lena, it was almost her duty as Kara’s best friend. 

“I was four, the Luthors adopted me and flew me here.” She shrugged, looking to Kara for help changing the topic, as much as she didn’t mind telling the story, she knew how people felt about her adoptive family and she didn’t want to make any enemies tonight. Kara took the hint and whispered something in Lena’s ear that nobody else could hear, causing Lena to smirk proudly. 

“Kara, what the hell as you whispering to her! Do I need to remind you that her daughter is asleep down the hall?!” Alex almost barked, the whole room erupting into laughter at how overprotective she was being… Lena was just a little scared. 

“I told her… that we just won the game!” She laughed as everyone else’s faces fell before she pulled Lena into a searing kiss in celebration of their win.

“Even though Lena did nothing.” Brainy stated matter-of-factly and Lena felt her cheeks flush, embarrassed and feeling just a little useless. She noticed Nia nudge him out of the corner of her eye, telling him to shut up and be respectful. 

“Lena does a lot of things… Catan just isn’t one of her skills…” Kara kissed her again in an attempt to clear her blush up, instead, making it deepen ferociously. She bit Kara’s lip, forgetting they had an audience until she heard Sara start cheering. 

“You’ve reminded me, I have a very hot girlfriend waiting for me in the 1800s, so if you don’t mind… I’m gonna get going.” Sara pressed a button on her watch, which Lena later learned was called a time courrier, and opened up a portal to a ship, before she waved goodbye and disappeared into another time period. She chose not to think about it because the concept of time travel fried her brain to an irreparable extent. 

“Yeah, I’m going to get going too.” Alex nodded, not used to seeing her sister be so ‘hands on’ with another person, despite how happy it made her to see Kara beside herself in love. “Hands off my little sister, Luthor” 

“My hands are off.” She held them up as if she was surrendering, Kara just laughing and pulling Lena closer, kissing her over and over in an effort to irritate her sister. The rest of the crowd slowly filtered away, but not without the awkward ramblings from Winn about how they should be safe tonight. The second they had left the house, Lena had started to pace, she had no idea how all of Kara’s friends had felt about her. It had been five hours of conversation that Lena just wasn’t sure whether she fit in. 

“Baby, come to bed.” Kara smiled sleepily, noticing her stress when she walked back in the living room from letting their visitors leave. She extended her hand but Lena ignored all of this, seemingly caught up in her own mind until Kara wrapped her in her arms. “What’s up, baby?”

“You think they liked me? I mean I was so quiet and awkward and I didn’t know what I was doing in the game, and Alex was so protective of you, Brainy didn’t seem to like me at all-” She was cut off with a short kiss.

“They loved you, you were yourself… trust me, Nia has already text in the group chat to ask me to invite you next time… she did say that you have to learn how to play for next time though.” 

“Maybe you could teach me?” Lena raised an eyebrow and Kara played along, moving her hands down her body.

“Hm? What do you want me to teach you?” She smirked, ready to pick up Lena and take her to her bed, looking almost irresistible in her girlfriend's oversized shirt and her own shorts.

“I want you to teach me how to play this game!” Lena broke away, tears threatening to spill over her eyes. She hadn’t realised how important it was for her to feel like she was fitting in until it was finally over. She didn’t feel the relief that she thought she would, instead she felt the long-buried desire to be a part of a family. To be loved as a family. 

“What’s this about?” Kara whispered, swooping the dark hair away from her clouded green eyes. She watched as she dragged her lip between her teeth, something so obviously playing on her mind. 

“God, please don’t laugh,” Kara shook her head and squeezed her hand, urging her to continue “I want to be loved, Kar. This felt so weirdly similar to when I was adopted… You know they adopted me just so that Lex had someone to beat at chess? It’s literally the only game I have ever played!”

“Baby, come here.” Kara opened her arms and Lena dropped herself into them, letting herself cry. As much as she hated being weak, Kara was the only person she felt like she could be this way around. 

“I beat Lex once and he ran straight to Lillian…she - she burnt me- she used- she used cigarettes and she doesn’t even smoke! Jesus! Who would have thought that a bloody board game would be a sore spot for me!” Lena spoke in exasperation, her heart rattling in her chest.

“I know Supergirl has a no kill policy… but I could make an exception?” Kara jested lightly, but Lena knew she only had to say the word and the woman would go away forever. “It’s not silly, Lee, it’s horrible that you were treated that way. I wish I’d known you before.” She sighed gently, Lena letting out a calm breath against her chest, pressing a kiss over the fabric of her shirt. 

“I know you now, though. And I love you now… hell, I think I’ll love you forever.” She smiled, taking in the calming sound of Kara’s heartbeat.

“Let me take you to bed? We can cuddle all night… you can even warm your feet on my legs like you always try to.” Kara teased her, making their way through to the bedroom where Lena instantly took off her socks making Kara cackle with laughter. 

“Don’t offer if you don’t mean it!” Lena smiled, a genuine wide smile. Kara was everything she could want, she was so lucky to be able to come here and be able to be herself with someone for the first time since she had met Sam. After a day of emotionally exhausting herself, neither Lena nor Kara were surprised when they fell asleep just before midnight, the surprise came when there were loud cries from another room on the other side of the apartment. 

“Mommy!” The tiny voice wailed. Lena seemed to be undisturbed by the cries but Kara’s super hearing picked up on all of it. She contemplated for a second whether or not she should wake up Lena, but she didn’t have the heart to wake up her peaceful girlfriend, so she made her way to Annie by herself. 

“Hey there, sweetie.” Kara smiled, sitting on the edge of the bed and pulling Annie into her lap. “What’s going on?” 

“There’s a boom!” She whined, clinging to Kara’s neck and hiding her face. Kara knew what she meant straight away, a book had fallen off the shelf, obviously making the noise that had scared Annie so much.

“Oh that sounds super scary, sweet pea.” Kara comforted her, glad when the sobs turned to cries which turned to whimpers. “How about we get a cup of water and chill out a bit… I’ll even stay here with you if you want me to?” She mumbled some kind of agreement and Kara took her through to get a drink, letting her relax again into the spare bed afterwards. 

“Stay.” Annie whimpered, relaxing again when the bed dipped next to her and she was pulled into a tight cuddle. 

“Of course I’ll stay, Annie, I love you.” Kara texted Lena so she could see exactly what had happened when she woke up before she too gave into sleep along with the little girl. 

Hi baby! Annie got scared cuz something fell off the shelf. No big deal but she freaked a bit so I’m in her room. Love you a lot, I wish I was waking up to your face. - K xox

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed!   
> as always please feel free to leave suggestions on my tumblr (@/illegally-luthor)  
> comments & kudos are welcomed  
> thank y'all for reading 
> 
> lu xox


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I've been really busy lately (it was my birthday over the weekend)  
> Anyways, I'm sorry this took so long and I'm sorry for any mistakes but I may or may not have written some of this when I was drunk...  
> I hope y'all enjoy but just so you're aware, a minor T/W for very very brief mentions of abuse.

Kara was getting used to waking up to Annie’s little feet poking in her side, what she wasn’t expecting was to wake up on the floor of her spare room to the three year old shaking her awake. She opened her eyes slowly, surprised when Lena wasn’t around to be seen before the memories from the night before came back to her.

“I’m hungry.” She sighed, rubbing her green eyes sleepily, her hair matted from being against the pillow. The tiny brunette looked up at Kara before her stomach grumbled loudly.

“I’ve got cereal and orange juice, does that sound good?” She asked her, standing up and stretching, grateful that the pain in her back would be gone in just a second of exposure to the sun. 

“And mommy!” Annie nodded happily, requesting that they got food for her mother too. She was just like her mother in some ways, and in others, they were complete polar opposites. They looked exactly alike, from their green eyes, to their dark hair and prominent chins, even their smiles which seemed to point slightly downwards.

Kara set about the kitchen, draining three mugs of coffee as she made Annie her breakfast. Rooting through her cupboards in order to find some kind of cutlery suitable for a child. She settled on a plastic spoon, presenting it to Annie before she started her work on the caseload she had been given. As much as she loved helping people, it upset her more than it had before. Every time that she met a child, she couldn’t help herself from thinking of Annie, she could not help wondering how her girlfriend’s daughter would react if she was in the situation and that thought alone was tearing her apart. 

She was eating her way through a few slices of toast, her hair tied up into a ponytail to keep it from falling into her work and food, and Annie was sitting on her knee, still slightly sleepy and in need of extra cuddles. Kara, of course, was happy to oblige. Lena hadn’t meant for Kara to get so involved with her daughter but Kara had dived in head first, accepting both the mother and daughter as hers. She was smiling through the pain in her gut when she walked into Kara’s kitchen to see them cuddled on a chair with Kara’s work spread in front of her.

Kara looked up and tried her best to hide any reaction she might have had to her girlfriend’s appearance. Her hair hung limply around her head, her eyes had dark circles and her skin looked green underneath its usual rosiness. She was almost swaying on her feet as she approached them, her head spinning as her stomach churned.

“Mommy, Kara maked breakfast!” Annie smiled up at her, not making any attempt to move from her place cuddled on Kara’s lap.

“That’s great, bug, but do you think I could steal Kara for a minute?” Lena stroked Annie’s hair before taking her from Kara and sitting her back on the chair after she had stood up. Kara looked at her with a concerned smile and Lena looked back at her, her face simply showing the image of complete and utter guilt. 

“What’s going on?” Kara asked nervously. She knew how Lena tended to act in tough situations so she pressed a kiss to the back of her girlfriend’s hand before she waited for her to continue.

“Have you got bleach I could use?” Lena asked sheepishly, dragging a clammy palm up to her hair to drag it away from her face. She shuddered a little at the movement, her skin temporarily flushing before it turned back to the sour, pale green that it was before.

“Yeah, I’ll show you.” Kara wrapped an arm around her waist, cringing a little as she felt her girlfriend flinch away from the touch. “Why do you need it?” She asked, bringing a hand up to massage away the obvious tension in Lena’s shoulders.

“Oh, it’s nothing… I was a little sick in the bathroom but I’m gonna clean it up, I just need to know where you keep the bleach….” Lena mumbled nervously. She hated being sick more than possibly anything else in the world, she hated how she was a worse mother, she hated how terrible she always felt, but most of all she hated that she could never stop and just take the time to heal and rest for the day. She had never once had a sick day in her life, always forced to hide it and hope she would get better whilst she worked, maternity leave was the only thing which had come even remotely close for Lena.

“Oh baby, you don’t have to clean it, come on and lay down.” Kara tried to take her arm to lead her back to bed. She couldn't help but notice how clammy Lena’s hand had felt in her own, she felt incredibly guilty that her girlfriend was feeling so unwell. Before Kara could process what was going on, Lena had ran back to the bathroom and was on her hands and knees beside the toilet, heaving into the bowl. Kara ran into the room after her, definitely knocking something over on the way to take care of her girlfriend. She pulled her silky hair out of her face and massaged her back with the other hand, it was disgusting to watch but she pushed the thought away in order to comfort Lena.

“Jesus Christ, Kara, never have kids! They always get you sick like this!” Lena groaned, thanking her girlfriend when she was handed a glass of water and her toothbrush. But it was too late for that, Kara practically felt as though she already had a child. Sure, Annie already had two parents, but she was just grateful to be playing some part in raising her... she was a pretty amazing kid. 

“I’m a Kryptonian, I don’t get sick with human illnesses, so for today I’m mother to Annie and you get to rest.” Kara pressed a kiss to the top of Lena’s head, then went on to put her hair up for her. Once she had brushed her teeth, Lena looked to her in protest of what she had just been told.

“Babe, you don’t have to do anything, I’ll be fine enough in half an hour to look after Annie… And we should probably leave, I’m sure you don't want a sick girl at your house.” Lena laughed and it was times like this that Kara had to curse her childhood. Why did Lillian never look after her well enough, why did she not let her have time off school when she was sick? Kara was certain that Lena would kill herself one day if she didn’t look after herself when something was wrong

“Nope, I’m here through everything.” Kara gave her a confident smile; she hated that she couldn’t understand the pain of humans, but at the same time, she was grateful for the fact that there was no change of her getting sick so she could cuddle her girlfriend and look after Annie and nobody would have to worry about it. “We can go back to yours if you’re more comfortable there… but you can have those pyjamas you always steal from me.” She winked.

“You mean that?” Lena asked, her emerald eyes looking even more tired at the prospect of not having to look after Annie all day when she felt like she was going to die. Being a mother was a full time job, there was no such thing as taking a day off sick. 

“Of course I mean it! Who would expect someone to keep working when they're this sick?” She took most of Lena’s weight through her arm that was draped around her shoulder, not wanting to carry her girlfriend if she was used to doing everything for herself. 

“Lillian.” Lena answered the question that was intended to be rhetorical, earning a sympathetic yet angry eye roll from Kara. It wasn’t news to the Kryptonian that Lena had been abused growing up, but it was something that she had grown to hate the thought of more and more every day. There wasn’t a single thing she could even fathom hating about Lena, let alone Lena as a four year old who she had imagined to be similar to Annie. Kara didn’t press anymore, her girlfriend already seeming uncomfortable with the topic. Instead, she bundled Lena into the living room. She pushed over the footstool and brought her the pillows and blankets from the bed as well as a hot water bottle to help settle her stomach.

“Comfy?” Kara asked, not expecting an answer as she pressed a kiss to her clammy forehead, her eyes fluttering closed, heavy with sleep. She took a moment to wonder about Lena, noticing how she was the luckiest person on this planet to be let in in the way that she had, even after they had fought. Lena had walls, thick, high walls, walls that were slowly being broken down by Kara. She was the lucky woman who could make her breakfast, she could take her on lunch dates, she could sit in her office with her and work through her cases, she could order them takeout and cuddle with her after a long day, and she could kiss her before they went to sleep at night. There was one boundary that, even in their six months together, they hadn’t crossed… they hadn’t had sex. But in that moment there, Kara was too overwhelmed by love to care, especially not when she saw Annie running up to her with superhero action figures, asking to play. 

“Of course we can, sweetie! How about we play our game and then we can make mommy some soup for lunch?” She took the toddler’s hand which was outstretched with excitement, handing Kara the white canary figure from her set. She had to suppress her giggles when she thought about the fact that Annie had met almost all of the people she idolised so much. 

“You can be white ‘nary!” She thrust another one towards Kara and she smiled even wider at this one - Dreamer. “And this is Dreamy!” Annie explained, making them do some kind of jump off the floor.

“That’s super cool, who will you be?” Kara asked, looking through the few that she had brought with her in her bag. She was both amazed and creeped out in equal measures when she saw the life-like, plastic versions of all of her friends. 

“Supergirl!” She jumped to her feet in order to show the woman how she could make the figure fly, and Kara’s heart practically exploded. Her life was too good to be true, really. She didn’t think she could be this happy when her girlfriend was sick and her only company was a three-year-old, but she was having a great time. She obviously knew she was great with children, even to the point of pursuing a career in social work, but now she thought about it, it hurt her heart. Annie always entered her mind when she saw distressed children and it worried her that she wouldn’t feel the same about her job again. It was upsetting her, all she wanted to do was protect Annie. 

“Annie! You’re super good at flying! I bet Supergirl will keep an extra eye out to protect you!” She gave the statement as if it were the truth, because it was. She would go to the ends of all of the earths in all of the universes if it meant that Annie was safe and ui made her wonder in that moment if that’s how it felt to be a parent. 

“She’s very cool.” Annie told her as if it were a secret. “She can do flying and she’s strong like mommy!” Annie told her very proudly, puffing out her chest in order to look as powerful as her mother or her much beloved hero. Kara couldn’t help swooning about the fact that she had indirectly been compared to her mother. It was too much for a toddler to understand, but it made her insides turn from steel to absolute mush.

“Speaking of mommy, do you think we should make her some soup?” Kara picked her up and took her through to the kitchen, letting her pick the vegetables out of the fridge to put in the soup. 

“Can we have carrots?” She asked Kara with her enormous, green, puppy eyes and her baby teeth nibbling excitedly at her lip.

“You like carrots too much, kid!” Kara didn’t try to hold back her laughter this time before she told Annie that she would put extra carrots in the soup just for her. “Do you think mommy will like this?” Kara asked and looked over at Annie who was now sat sadly on the counter, looking as if she was just about ready to start crying. 

“I miss mommy.” She whimpered, seeming to have her mood completely switch in the few minutes that Kara was working at the stove. She turned off the heat and turned all of her attention to Annie who looked so tiny yet so angry, so much like Lena often did when she was on her phone. It shouldn’t have been as cute as it was. “Up Kara.” She whined, Kara obliged. Annie was very rarely angry and she wasn’t entirely sure how Lena would have wanted her to deal with the situation so she played by the child’s rules, deciding that her anger must come more from a place of sadness rather than rage. 

“I know you do, sweet pea. How about we all have some soup together and we can see how mommy feels? Maybe we can watch a movie with her afterwards?” She held tightly to Annie with one arm, noticing her glare turn simply into a frown as she answered her with a moody nod. The other hand worked to quickly serve them their lunches, bringing it through to the living room on a tray to her sick girlfriend, even telling Annie to take all of the credit for the food; after all, she did get out all of the vegetables… or just the carrots… the details were irrelevant if it made the mother and daughter happy. 

“Mommy, I made you soup.” Annie pointed to the bowl Kara was holding and Lena’s face turned from distorted and sleepy to the softest smile Kara had possibly seen in her entire life.

“Did you know, Annie, that you are my favourite person on this entire planet?” Lena ruffled her hair, obviously desperate to hug her but reluctant to pass on any of her illness. “And Kara is probably my second favourite.” She added and Kara couldn’t even be offended, if she was honest, Lena and Annie were tied for the first place spot in her life. 

“I love you mommy and Kara.” She flopped dramatically onto the couch, making both of the women smile. Kara couldn’t wipe away her adoring grin at the way she had told her that she loved her. Things were moving quickly but there was no way on earth that she could say they were moving at the wrong speed. 

“I love you too.” Kara kissed her head, watching as she ran out of the room in order to retrieve her stuffed toy, something that Kara had learned was a necessary accessory if they were going to be watching a movie. Once she had gone, she turned her attention to Lena who was cuddled into her cocoon.

“Jealous?” Lena teased, the smile lines appearing around her eyes as she spoke. Kara couldn't get enough of them, especially since she noticed how much more pronounced they had become in the ten months that they had known each other. 

“Of your sickness?” Kara laughed and Lena simply raised her eyebrows as if she were about to challenge her for her negativity. “Seriously though, how do you feel?” Kara patted her lap and waited for Lena to get herself cozy against her. She listened to her heartbeat, always a little quicker when they touched, even after all these months. 

“I have a migraine to end all migraines.” She groaned “It always shocks me that I can feel like this on a weekly basis but there’s you who feels fantastic all the time! How is that fair?” 

“Maybe you should get sent to another planet and see if you don’t get sick when you land there?” Kara suggested, making sure she was eating the soup.

“Touche, babe.” She closed her eyes tightly as if clenching them would rid her of the pain, something Kara wished that she was able to do for her instead. “Play with my hair?” She asked, her voice sheepish and barely above a whisper as the words fell from her lips. 

“Say no more.” She patted the seat next to her when Annie came back in, a blanket around her shoulders and her hippo tucked under the crook of her arm, looking just about as ready as her mother was for a nap. She tucked herself under Kara’s other arm and they settled into some kids movie outlining morals and good behaviour - or something along those lines. She had one hand laced through the straight dark hair of her girlfriend, not willing to move it as she felt her relax into her touch. The other hand was used to steady Annie against her on the couch, making sure she didn’t slip off as she passed out sleepily, leaving only Kara awake.

The rest of the day continued in very much the same way, a lot of naps for Lena and a lot of playing with Annie before Lena finally ventured out from the confines of her blanket cocoon to put Annie to bed. She was more than excited to see her mother back in action so Kara left them to it, keeping half an ear out in case Lena started to feel sick again. In her head, she knew what Lena had was just your average, human migraine, but that didn’t stop her from worrying and doing everything in her power to ensure that she would be safe. 

“I love you.” Annie mumbled and it really struck Lena how old she was. She had been planning to send her to pre-school in September and it took seeing the three-year-old in that moment to notice that she wasn't a baby anymore. She knew when she was hungry and what she wanted to eat, she knew when she was tired and when she needed to go to the bathroom, and she knew with her whole heart how much she loved her mommy and how much her mommy loved her. 

“I love you even more, Annie-bug. Now close your sleepy little eyes and have lots of fun dreams, okay? Come and get me from Kara’s room if you need anything.” She kissed her forehead, then her nose, then her cheek, not able to take in enough of her precious little girl. It made her laugh inwardly when she thought about it. Growing up, she was adamant that she didn’t want children, but now as she watched her daughter sleep, all she could think about was having another baby, even letting her mind entertain the ideas of what a baby of Kara’s might look like. 

She left the room, her hands tucked deep into the pocket of her favourite of Kara’s hoodies and her glasses balanced on the end of her nose. Her head was throbbing significantly less than before and she noted how it had cleared up a lot faster than it usually would, giving Kara all of the credit for this since she had been the biggest help to her all day. She made her way through to Kara’s room and had to hold back her gasp when she saw her mid-way through changing into her pyjamas. Of course, with her super-hearing, Kara had heard her breath falter and turned around to see her wide eyed girlfriend. They had seen each other when they had changed before, but it had usually been when they were rushing - or angry - and Lena had never had the time to appreciate it like she could right now. 

“Like what you see?” Kara teased, Lena noticed how she was a master of teasing in so many ways. 

“How could I not?” Lena licked her lips, her brain filling with thoughts which were definitely a little more than platonic. “If my brain wasn’t on fire right now, there’s a lot of things I would do to you.” She made her way over to Kara and put down the shirt that she was about to put on, she was naked from the waist up, leaving her perfectly defined abs out for her to see. 

“Miss Luthor, are you trying to seduce me?” The taller blonde looked down at her, her blue eyes shimmering with the most loving gaze that was humanly - or the alien equivalent - possible. 

“What if I was?” She teased back at her, placing one hand flat on her abs.

“I’d tell you that we have to wait for you to get better.” Kara returned to her regular, bubbly self, holding the hand that was touching her abs and pressing a kiss to the back of it. I made you tea so maybe we could cuddle and drink that and see how you feel on date night?” Kara pouted after she finished speaking and Lena picked up on the hint, giving her a sweet kiss which she worried would not be enough until date night. 

“Sleep shirtless?” Lenea asked her, partially because of how incredible she looked, but also partially because she was the warmest thing on this planet and she kind of just wanted to snuggle close to her skin. She got under the covers, shirtless as requested, and smiled to herself as her girlfriend made herself comfortable against, appearing to be using her boobs as a pillow - not that she minded in the slightest. 

“I love you, Kar.” 

“You’re only saying that because of my boobs.” 

“What if I’m saying it because I feel alive when I’m around you. Being a mother was my purpose but being with you is my happiness, so I love you. I love your optimism and your weird obsession with Disney movies, I love your smile and how warm you are and that you're selfless, I love more than anything that you love Annie. I love you, baby.” Lena pressed a kiss on her chest, right next to where she was laid. 

“I love you too, baby, I really do.” 

“Oh, and for the record, I do love your boobs.” She added as she started drifting to sleep, the last sounds she heard that day was the sound of Kara’s gleeful laughter bouncing around the room, full to the brim with love, happiness and appreciation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope y'all enjoyed this, I think I should be updating more this week since the birthday celebrations are over!!  
> if y'all have suggestions then please comment or hit up my tumblr (@/illegally-luthor)  
> other than that, feel free to leave kudos (it's much appreciated) and thank you for reading!!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> minor trigger warning  
> mild mentions of rape (no detail)  
> mentions of unhealthy coping mechanisms, i think just drinking...
> 
> sorry if I have missed anything but please be careful if you're particularly sensitive to any of this
> 
> Hope you enjoy and thank you for all of the birthday wishes!! much appreciated (it was my 18th so let's hope adulthood treats me well)

“How’s work been this week?” Kara asked as she poured her girlfriend another glass of wine across the table. Sam had offered to babysit for them so that they could go out on a date and have some alone time, and both women had jumped at the offer. 

“Exhausting, but I think I’m finally getting somewhere with the research.” She nodded, her left hand instinctively going to cover the burns and marks on her right hand. She wasn’t hiding them from Kara anymore, but she wasn’t exactly happy that they were there, angry and red against her pale skin. 

“I wish you wouldn’t do that to yourself.” She sighed, moving her plate to Lena to let her take the salad off of it. It was a little routine that they had developed in their time together, Kara would get Lena’s friend and Lena would get Kara’s salad with whatever they ordered. 

“Nobody will volunteer to be a part of a Luthor’s clinical trial.” Lena shrugged but Kara could see how upset it made her. She knew that she wasn’t like the rest of her family, she had been the one to help them catch Lex, she didn’t mourn Lionel’s death a single day in her life, and she never once contacted Lillian in prison, no matter how angrily she had demanded it.

“The rest of the world are dumb.” Kara sighed. “If I was a human, I’d let you test on me…”

“How romantic of you.”

Their evening continued, Lena getting tipsy on her wine and Kara sneaking some alien alcohol into her glass so they could have fun together for the first time in a while without a child. They ended up in a club for the first time ever in Lena’s life, something that Kara was more than shocked to hear. 

“I never had time before… I turned twenty-one in July and got pregnant in the August…. There wasn’t a lot of time for me to go to a club.” Lena explained and it made Kara really understand how much of Lena’s life she had missed out on between her overly controlled childhood and having a baby so young.

“We have no time to lose then! I’m gonna order us some cocktails and then we can dance.” Kara promised, leaving to go to the bar after a slightly lingering kiss. She’d been using fake IDs since she was nineteen to sneak into clubs with her sister and she was so excited to finally do something she loved doing when she was younger with the woman that she loved. Neither of them were drunk, more delightfully tipsy as they sipped their drinks at a table to the side of the dance floor. 

Kara pulled Lena to her feet and dragged her out into the bustle of people, sweaty and crowded to enjoy the music. She let her hands fall to Lena’s waist taking in the feeling of her mesh blouse and denim skirt beneath her fingers. Lena found herself doing the same, slipping her fingers into the cut out strips from the waist of Kara’s pink dress. She moved her hips to the music, smirking as Kara pressed herself against her and danced with her. It didn’t take long for Lena to decide that going to clubs wasn’t necessarily what she would choose to do - she assumed it may have been more fun if it was something you had done when you were younger.

Her feelings towards their night changed almost impossibly quickly when two men came over with the offer to buy them drinks. Lena offered them a polite refusal and was about to explain that she had a girlfriend, when the slightly drunk, very overprotective version of her girlfriend sprung to life.

“Sorry boys, but Miss Lena here will be coming home with me tonight.” She tightened her arm around Lena’s waist, and the dark haired woman was honestly surprised that Kara wasn’t able to feel the way her stomach had erupted in butterflies from the way she had just spoken. “Isn’t that right?” She nipped at Lena’s ear as she said this, and the two men obliged, wishing them a good evening before they walked away. 

“Kiss me, Kara.” Lena said almost as soon as they had walked away, causing Kara to laugh. She pressed a quick peck to her lips and Lena raised an eyebrow in the way she always did when she wanted something. “That is not what I would call a kiss.” She grabbed the back of Kara’s neck and pulled her in closer, hands roaming everywhere and her knees buckling if she thought about what was happening. 

Kara ended up calling them a taxi which they fell into and made out in the back of like teenagers. They felt ridiculous as Kara chased her girlfriend up the stairs, fumbling with lock and key as she tried her best to get them both inside as quickly as she could - even if she was heavily distracted by the blonde standing dangerously close behind her. They giggled and shared kisses as they stripped off their clothes and made the most of their very rare alone time, finally finding the time to enjoy one another after so much time. Lena loved every muscle of Kara’s, she especially loved the one tiny scar she had on her hip from her life before earth - something that she had made a mental note to talk to Kara about later. Kara loved Lena’s curves and didn’t flinch when her hands were met with stretch marks, in fact, she loved that she was able to be the only person who saw them. It was pure bliss for both of them.

Lena woke up the next morning as the sun rose and she smiled at the feeling of pure warmth beneath her. Kara was naked but the bed sheets were tucked up to her chin where Lena’s head was resting for the night. Her blonde locks were sprawled across the pillow, messy after Lena had spent the night with her hands pulling on it. Her cheeks were still a little rosy but her perfect skin was illuminated by the early morning sun, making her look like pure, liquid gold. As much as she wanted to bask in this moment forever, there was no force on this earth - alien or otherwise - which could have stopped her from kissing Kara. 

“Good morning.” She grumbled after their lips parted, her grip tightening lovingly around Lena’s waist as if she were about to leave the comfort of their bed. “I’m guessing you slept well? You passed out right on top of me.” Kara teased, tucking a strand of the straight, dark hair behind her ear so that she could see her girlfriend better. Her wide smile was glistening in the light that shone through the gaps in the blinds and the sight alone filled her with so much warmth and joy. 

“Not all of us are blessed with your alien stamina!” Lena shot back playfully, tucking herself back into the comfort of her girlfriend’s naked body. “Did you sleep well? I was practically crushing you all night…” Lena admitted, a little embarrassed by the fact she had fallen asleep on top of her; not embarrassed enough to move though. 

“So well.” She mumbled as she brought her into another kiss. This was pure, uninterrupted bliss and neither of them could think of a single thing better than this right now. “I love you, Lee.”

“You don’t know how much I love you, Kara. Seriously I didn’t- I just- sorry this sounds so dumb.” Lena laughed it off, praying that Kara would let it go but she knew that wouldn’t be the case when her brows furrowed and her face contorted into that adorable crinkle that she knew all too well. 

“Nothing you say is dumb, baby, what’s on your mind?” She moved Lena from on top of her, rolling onto her side so that she could see her better. She looked even more beautiful than before, her skin so pale it almost reflected the sun, her hair the most beautiful contrast like that of a black and white photograph. Her eyes looked as though they were made of emeralds, the type that even the richest people on this planet could never afford. She was everything that was good in this world and she was all Kara’s. 

“I just didn’t think sex could be a good thing…” She trailed off before a comforting arm made its way around her waist, reminding her that she was safe and loved and that she was finally happy. “I slept with a few rich boys in high school and college but that was mostly to keep mother happy, she always said that Luthors needed to be in important relationships, which basically meant they had to be straight and marry into wealth.” She took a deep breath, just letting Kara’s nimble fingers dance around her hip bone in her own special way of calming her.

“I figured out in college that something wasn’t right with sex but I thought it was only meant to be good for the guys so I kept just letting it happen, I’ll admit, none of those guys were bad people, we just weren’t meant to be together.” Lena continued to explain “And then I met Andrew and I came out to him. He was helping me a lot with Lex at the time and -” Lena broke off and rolled over so she couldn't look at Kara and her pleading, sympathetic eyes. 

“Lee-” Kara started but was cut off by a sharp ringtone from her bedside table. Lena picked it up and Kara heard as her heart started to race at an unimaginable speed. All the colour drained from her face.

“Kar, I’ve gotta go.” Lena pulled on her clothes from the night before, her ears ringing painfully as she stood and tried to maneuver her way around the room. 

“Babe, can we talk about this? I want to be here for you.” Kara stood up too, grabbing her robe to cover herself and walking up to Lena who flinched away from her touch. 

“I just need to go right now.”

“Why? Is everything okay?” 

“I told you, I need to go!” She snapped this time, leaving Kara dumbfounded, standing in the doorway of her bedroom. Lena ran down the stairs of the apartment building and punched the wall outside whilst she waited for the taxi to appear. She almost cried at the sting in her knuckles and couldn’t help the instant anger she felt at Kara for not being able to feel pain, no matter how much she cared, she could never know how Lena felt, not right now with her life falling apart and her knuckles cracked and bleeding. 

When the taxi finally showed up, she got in the back seat, not wanting to see the driver, and text Sam to ask her if she could keep Annie for the rest of the weekend. She’d given her a small lie about why she couldn’t be picked up, after all, Annie didn’t need to be aware of everything that was going on, especially when she was so deeply involved. She was eternally grateful to see that Sam had agreed without much of a question, she knew better than to question Lena, especially when it came to Annie. She was sure that her best friend would do the right thing where her daughter was concerned.

She practically ran into her house, not caring that she had accidentally tipped her driver a hundred dollars more than she had intended to, after all, money was just an object to her. She shut all of the blinds and turned off all of the lights, she didn’t want the world to know she existed, hell, if it wasn’t for Annie she wasn’t even sure that she would want to exist. She closed her eyes tightly and let herself cry. It was almost therapeutic to feel her hot tears trickle down her cheeks, leaving tracks in last night’s makeup on their way to her chin where they collected and fell to her sheets. 

She checked her phone again and felt sick when she saw the titles of the news articles that had already been published about her personal life. She didn’t ask to be famous, and yet her most painful news was being broadcast to literally anybody who had a smartphone in the entire world. 

‘LENA LUTHOR TO BE TAKEN TO COURT BY HER EX LOVER?’

‘LEX LUTHOR TO BE ALLOWED ON DAY RELEASE TO SPEAK IN COURT!’

‘CUSTODY BATTLE EMPLOYS THE HELP OF A SERIAL KILLER! IS IT ALL WORTH IT TO SEE ANNALISE LUTHOR?’

The third title she read really struck something in her, it made her feel sick to her very core. How could somebody possibly question the importance of her daughter? She was so cute and smart and loving already, she did not deserve to have her life tainted by endless trials and custody battles. She didn’t deserve a rapist for a father and she didn’t deserve her serial killer uncle or abusive, alien-hating grandmother. Annie was too good for this sorry fucking world and Lena was so aware of that. Her insides lurched and she forced herself not to be sick, if she was honest, she couldn’t be bothered to throw up. 

She could feel her phone ringing and going to voicemail repeatedly, each call from her girlfriend that she couldn’t help but feel so sorry for. She had dragged Kara into her messy life and there was nothing she could do to escape from it. A man who didn't care was fighting her for her daughter and a man who cared too much was going to be free and open to assassinate her if he so fancied. 

She barely thought as she moved towards the bottle of scotch on the counter in her bedroom. Her hands quickly wrapped around it and she barely surprised herself when she managed to drain half of it before she even took it away from her lips. God, her mother would be pissed if she could see her right now… imagine her not looking professional at all hours of the day. There are so many things that Lillian would kill her for, but Lex was the only one in the family who had enough balls to even try to kill her - she had to give him credit for this. 

Hours passed, counted by the bottle of scotch which was still being drained, burning her throat as it made its way into her system. She had barely noticed the time before she checked her phone. She had been laying there all day, missing nine texts from Kara as well as three from Sam, and a grand total of twenty four missed calls. 

Lee, did I do something? Please can we talk? - K xox

Hi baby, did you get home safe? - K xox

Okay please don't be mad but i flew past to check on you and I heard your heart so I’m glad you made it home - K xox

Sam just text to tell me Annie is staying with her longer, can I do anything to help? - K xox

Okay, I’m really worried now, please pick up the calls - K xox

Rao, I saw the news. Can I do anything… - K xox

Baby, I’m really worried about you right now, I haven’t heard from you in hours, can you just let me know how you’re doing? - K xox

I really don’t want to bother you too much but I promise I’m here for you. - K xox

I love you, I wish I could help - K xox

She closed her eyes and let herself fall asleep, waking up only a couple of hours later to her phone ringing incessantly on her bedside. She picked it up in the hope of just getting the noise to stop if she spoke to someone.

“Lena! Thank Rao you answered!” Kara’s voice filled her ear. What would have usually made her feel incredibly comforted made her feel physically sick. Her life was a storm, she didn’t deserve this kind of sunshine. 

“Kara just leave me alone!” Lena slurred, her head pressing into the pillow like a rock, unable to hold it up as she normally would.

“Are you drunk?” Kara chastised her, earning a scoff from the woman who was sounding decidedly more Irish than usual. 

“I wasn’t going to do this fucking sober, was I?” Her voice was tinged with the accent that Kara could usually not resist hearing.

“I- uh- I’m just sorry…” Kara replied, hurt and almost speechless. 

“What am I meant to do…” Lena spoke into the silence on the other end of the line, her head throbbing painfully when she was merely on the verge of thinking about her situation. “My serial killer of a brother is going to tell the court I’m an unfit mother! What about Annie?! If I lose her I can’t stay alive, Kara!” She broke down sobbing, the pain deepening when the line went dead on the other end, leaving her with a less than helpful utterance of ‘I love you’. 

Lena curled further into herself, letting herself cry at the thought of her life falling apart in front of her for the millionth time. It wasn’t like she could ask for help, she couldn’t speak to Kara about Lex after what he had done to her cousin! That would be an absurd thing to expect from her. It was times like this where she was jealous of her girlfriend, and as she began to ponder on the matter, she heard the soft tap of the familiar boots just outside on her balcony. The door opened and closed in one swift movement but she couldn't bring herself to look at Kara. She had one good thing in her life and her family was about to ruin that for her.

“Sorry I took so long.” Kara sighed, rushing to change and returning to the room a few seconds later in a hoodie and sweats. “I brought you some tea and I brought that blanket that you really like…” She draped it around her shoulders, taking in the dishevelled appearance of her usually prim and proper girlfriend. 

“Kar- they don't sell this in America!” Lena practically gasped, taking the travel mug in her hands and taking a long sip, almost enjoying how the liquid burned her tongue. 

“Some people are worth flying to Ireland for.” She took that as an invitation to move closer to Lena, tentatively placing one of her hands on her thigh and running her thumb over it in a comforting movement. She took a moment to breathe before she spoke about the topic on hand. “Can you talk to me, Lee? I’ve been freaking out all day and I just want to help but I don’t know what to do if you won’t let me in.” 

“You can’t be let in, not when my brother is involved!” Lena snapped her reply, all she wanted was to lay and cry into her mug of tea, not to be forced to talk about how her entire world was shattering in front of her. 

“I’m Supergirl! I can handle it, baby.” She spoke softly, but her confidence just enraged Lena even further, her chest heaving and her eyes burning with surprisingly unshed tears. 

“You’re not as strong as you think! He had Kryptonite last time, he could easily get it again!” She choked, pulling her legs to her chest and pushing Kara’s hand away from her. “I don’t want you to come anywhere near me until any of this is over, okay?” 

“I can’t just leave you alone for six months!” 

“You’re going to get fucking murdered! Then what’s the plan? I’ll live alone forever, Annie will be in the custody of her fucking father and you’ll be dead!” She all but screamed as the words fell from her mouth, she wasn’t angry, so much as terrified. Her throat burned and she was drunk out of her mind. The little comfort that the tea and the blanket had provided were fading quickly and she felt as though she might die. Fighting for Annie took as much out of her as it physically could, she couldn’t cope with Kara getting involved. 

“You can’t just cut me out like this, Lena! We’re together, I will be here for you through everything, okay? Just please don’t make this harder than it has to be.” She tried to bite back her own tears, pulling Lena fiercely into a tight, near bone-crushing, hug. 

“You don’t understand…” Lena uttered, the words barely falling from her mouth. If her girlfriend wasn’t a literal superhero, there would have been no way that she would have heard what was said.

“I want you to help me understand…” 

“You’re my only family, okay?!” She slapped her hands against the mattress, letting sobs wrack her whole body, she was done holding back. Keeping all of this inside was bound to kill her. So she spoke, knowing with her whole heart that the words wouldn’t fall on deaf ears. 

“I watched my mum die when I was four, and I watched Lionel take his last breath in hospital…” She took a deep breath, realising how disaster just seemed to follow her around, no matter what she tried to do to stop it. “I was held hostage by Lex when he lost his mind, and I was in Luthor Corp the day that mother was arrested! All my family were gone, Kara, and it was horrendous in every way you could imagine! The only common factor was me!” 

“You know that none of this is your fault, baby.” She pulled Lena against her, her girlfriend who was once drunk and angry was now as weak as could be. “You didn’t do anything wrong. In fact, you are the single strongest person on this planet, but I won't let you go through this alone. You aren’t losing Annie and you sure as hell won’t be losing me! I’ll pray to Rao every day for you, I’ll protect you as Supergirl and I’ll love you as Kara! You aren’t alone.” 

“You really think we’ll be okay?” Lena asked shakily. She had every right to be nervous, it was as if everything that could go wrong, had gone wrong, even after she had had the best night of her life. 

“I know we will… You can say no to this, I promise I won’t be offended-” Kara started and smiled as she saw Lena nod sincerely in response. “If you want me to, I could move in for a while? I know we’ve only been together for a little while but I thought if i was around it could, y’know help a little since I’m bulletproof and all that… But I mean I’m also one hundred percent more than happy to help out in other ways… I know how difficult it can be to bring a case to court so maybe I could help around the house a little more and spend more time with Annie whilst you work on it? Or I’m just overstepping… you can totally tell me to leave right now…” 

Lena stared back at her, eyes wide and so full of adoration for the woman in front of her. “You’d really do that?” 

“I’d do anything, I’ll pick Annie up from daycare if you want? Then we can be sure that if Lex has anything planned, she won't get hurt? I could be like a baby bodyguard?” Kara joked weakly and Lena offered her a numb sort of laugh in return. 

“Playing mother, are we?” She smiled sadly and Kara blushed a deep red… it wasn’t the time to be having this conversation. “But, if you’re really willing to help, then please? It would be really nice to have you around if you think it’s safe for you.”

“I’d rather be unsafe in your arms, than safe and away from you… how else could I protect my girls?” She laid down and took Lena with her, taking the blanket from her shoulders and laying it over the both of them.

“Can we explain this all to Sam tomorrow, you’re both in Annie’s life so much and I want you two to be on the same page with everything.” Lena snuggled into Kara. Her chest was still in knots but she was sure that they would untangle themselves eventually if she wasn’t alone anymore. She hated to admit it and become reliant on someone, after all, she was a Luthor, but being able to lean on Kara might be the most comforting feeling in the world sometimes. 

“We can go there as soon as you’re ready, I already miss the little pumpkin.” Kara held Lena extra tightly as they laid together, her arm in the most loving grip around her waist, making sure that she couldn't run off again. “Promise you won’t run again in the morning?” 

“I promise, I’m sorry about that, it wasn’t anything to do with last night…” 

“Mhm, I know, baby. But we’re in this together now, this is our life, and you’re stuck with me.” She couldn’t help from showing her sunshiney smile for the first time in a while when she heard Lena giggle a little at her comment. “I love you, Luthor.”

“I love you too, Danvers.” She threaded her fingers into the blonde hair and played with the ends of it. Having something so tangible in her space, having someone who could love her and tell her so over and over again, even after she messed up. Well, she couldn’t want anything more… except Annie to be hers, and Lex to be in prison. But that could be dealt with when they woke up, she had lawyers and she had Kara, so they could get through this, even if it would be tough. They fell asleep with their legs tangled together, exhausted after the emotional turmoil from the day, but just grateful to be together. Alone wasn’t something they knew anymore, they were one and they were stronger together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed!!   
> As always, feel free to leave comments or hit up my tumblr (@/illegally-luthor) make yourselves known on my tumblr!! I'm always active & up for suggestions.  
> Leaving Kudos is more than appreciated!   
> Sorry for any mistakes, but as always, I was short for time!! (it's midnight and I have to see the optician at 7am oops)
> 
> Lu xox


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long!  
> Didn't have time to proof read (it's 2am)  
> Hope y'all enjoy anyways!!

“Lee, are you coming to bed?” Kara padded down the stairs, rubbing her eyes sleepily. She had gone to bed three hours ago but her girlfriend was nowhere to be seen. She was at her desk in her office, her eyes swollen and her daughter’s blanket in her hands, Kara practically shattered at the sight of her.

“I’ll be there in a bit, don’t wait up for me.” She tried her absolute best to not cry again, biting so hard on her lip that Kara had started to smell the iron in her blood.

“Can I stay here with you? I’ll make us both some tea and we can chill for a bit?” The blonde woman perched on the arm of the office chair and stroked her hand down her girlfriend’s arm. She leaned in and kissed her forehead, not minding that Lena hadn’t replied, her being this upset was understandable. The hearing was tomorrow - Lena would have to fight for Annie for the millionth time in her life, and from the sounds of it, Andrew had made quite the compelling case against her as an unfit mother. 

“I feel like I’m gonna vomit.” Lena groaned, burying her face in Kara’s chest, her hand gripping even tighter onto Annie’s blanket. “I really hate to ask, and I know you’re meant to be with us in court tomorrow, but please can you take Annie somewhere else?” 

“You don’t want us to come with you?” Kara asked, thinking that her nerves could be getting the better of her, influencing a last minute change of plans on behalf of the mother.

“I do, I really do- I just don’t want Annie to see all of this again… and she loves spending time with you, you might as well go out and have a good day.” She sighed deeper than ever before as Kara agreed to take Annie out. It didn’t take much persuasion, she absolutely adored spending time with the toddler. Over the last nine months, Annie had grown to love Kara almost too much, asking for her all of the time that she wasn’t there, even making her drawings at daycare, which Kara displayed proudly on either Lena’s fridge or her own. 

“Let’s go to bed, I’ll be up until you can fall asleep, baby.” Kara picked her up effortlessly and carried her to the bedroom. Generally, she let Lena do everything for herself, not normally a fan of looking after the strong woman to this extent, but very rarely, Lena needed the extra support and she was always more than willing to give it. 

“You do too much for the two of us.” Lena sighed later when they were tucked into bed next to each other, not cuddling but enjoying each other’s company. 

“I’m serious about you, Lee, I’m not going anywhere.” She rolled over and kissed her on the lips, firm and gentle all at the same time. It was a kiss of sincerity, meaningful yet nothing too out of the ordinary for the couple. 

The next morning, Lena woke up first. It wasn’t unusual for her, usually rising with the sun, but today she simply took the extra time to pace around the bedroom. She decided on her fanciest work clothes to wear today, a Ralph Lauren blouse and black pencil skirt, along with her locket which housed a photograph of Annie. She spent too much time meticulously doing her makeup so as not to look run down in any way when in reality she hadn’t slept for days. She stood to face her closet and pick out her shoes when she heard Annie start to run up the hallway to their room.

“Mommy! Kara!” Annie burst through the door and Kara sat up, rubbing her eyes and opening her arms to the excited girl. “Good morning.” She snuggled into Kara’s arms for the briefest second before she started to jump on the bed. Something had to drain that toddler excitement that she constantly possessed. 

“Good morning, sweet pea.” Kara smiled, looking over at Lena who was showing a nervous smile of her own. Something about the way she looked at Annie was different than normal, her sadness and fear was masked by the plasticised grin. 

“Mommy! You gotta jump too!” She practically gushed, trying her best to jump higher, even if her mother thought that jumping merely an inch from the mattress was more than high enough.

“Mommy’s got to go to a very very important meeting right now, bug. So maybe Kara can bounce on the bed with you? Is that okay?” She double checked, knowing that if she had any worries about staying with Kara that they could just come to court with her.

“Kara can we get pot-s’ickers?” Annie gasped excitedly, sharing her love for the dumplings, much to the distaste of her mother. It was impossible to say no to her tiny toothy grin though which was only accentuated by her sweet little dimples. 

“Fine by me, I’ll leave you a credit card for the day, everything’s your call.” Lena made her way over to her girlfriend’s side of the bed, leaning down to capture her lips one final time before she definitely had to leave for court. “I trust you with her, babe, don’t worry about it.” 

“I love you, Lee. Call me later and we can pick you up.” She kissed her again, squeezing her arm gently to let her know everything that she couldn't tell her whilst they were in front of Annie. 

“I love you too… Bug, come give me a hug goodbye.” Lena opened her arms to Annie who trampled across the bed towards her and gave her the biggest hug that her toddler arms could muster.

“I love you, mommy! Lots and lots and lots!” 

“I love you more than anything, Annie-bug. Be good for Kara, okay?” She gave her the tightest hug she ever had and smiled at her innocence as she returned to jumping on the mattress just seconds after she was let go. 

Kara didn’t comment on the fact she knew her girlfriend hadn't eaten that morning, nor the fact that she could see the evidence from the four cups of coffee that she had inhaled. Instead she chose to just let her be. Unhealthy habits could be resolved later, one day wouldn’t make a difference and there was no point in adding extra stress to what was undoubtedly going to be a hard day for her. 

She took Annie’s hand and they descended the stairs together, unable to hold back her smile when the pyjama-clad feet of the toddler shuffled down the hallway towards the kitchen. It was breakfast time, something that Kara had become ridiculously familiar with over the past four months of almost living in the Luthor household. She got to work around the kitchen almost instantly, pouring Annie a cup of apple juice to drink whilst she set up some vegan sausages to cook for the two of them. It was a no-daycare-day which meant they got a hot breakfast instead of the usual cold cereals or fruits. They ate together and spoke about all the new and exciting things in their lives… which meant they spoke about horse cartoons and their favourite colours. 

She took Annie upstairs straight afterwards, encouraging her to go to the bathroom whilst she could choose out her clothes. She got the call from the bathroom a few seconds later to announce that she had been able to pee, something that she was ridiculously proud of, before she called in to Kara to ask for some help washing her hands. They dressed her in some shorts and a t-shirt since it was the middle of August, and then let her play for a while whilst she got herself ready for the day. She chose a white sundress and got out the sunscreen after a moment of forgetting that not everybody was immune to sunburn. 

This was the source of the first tantrum she had had in front of solely Kara. She hated sunscreen. Absolutely despised it, unable to comprehend the idea that it would keep her safe throughout the day. She writhed in Kara’s arms, almost to the point where she truly considered if it was the right thing to be doing. 

“Annie, does mommy make you wear sunscreen?” Kara asked gently as the little girl cried and cried in her arms. 

“No.” She snapped in response.

“Do you want me to call mommy and ask her, or are you telling me the truth?” With that, Annie held out her arms moodily for her to apply the sunscreen, refusing for at least the next five minutes to give her a smile, even through the jokes that she was desperately telling her. 

Once the sunscreen scandal had been resolved, she had walked her to the park. She was so full of personality and energy, more so than she had realised previously, having never had to get Annie ready and take her out all by herself. She was a ridiculously clever little girl, spending the whole walk talking Kara through her time at daycare, even singing her the alphabet song once… or a hundred times. Still, despite the fact that it should have been irritating, she couldn't help herself from wanting to hear the off-key singer again and again, her heart swelling with pride as she perfectly sang every letter. 

She let Annie run off to the swings, gladly pushing her and hearing her giggles when she spotted a familiar face running in her direction. Her baby niece, followed by both of her mothers. She was shocked to see Alex had the day off from the DEO, but she didn’t question it, instead opting for the girls to play together on the basket swing whilst she spoke to her family.

“Kar! Fancy seeing you here!” Kelly hugged her closely whilst Alex looked around the park for Lena. The woman, much to her surprise, was nowhere to be seen. 

“Where’s the girlfriend?” Alex asked her as she checked both of the girls were safely in the swing before she let it go with one big push. 

“It’s her court date today, so I’m babysitting!” She smiled at the toddler who gave her a happy thumbs up in return. 

“You’re basically her mama, not a babysitter! Alex laughed and Kara felt a blush climb her cheeks. She was proud to hear that, proud to know that maybe her presence was having some kind of impact on this girl that she had grown to love so much. She knew before she met her girlfriend that she had wanted children, but now when she thought about that, Annie was always in the picture with them. It wasn’t something that she could have thought to be possible before. 

“You really think so? I’m trying my best with her but… I only met her when she was two…” Kara rambled a little sadly, almost embarrassed to admit it at all. She knew better than anyone that time and genetics isn’t what made a family - she was adopted when she was thirteen and her niece was adopted when she was one. Nothing about the two of them was unloved. They were a family. 

“I met my little baby when she was one.” Kelly added in, scooping Scarlett from the swing that she was sat in, her chubby little legs pressed against the plastic. “There isn’t a life without her, Kar, and if you’re feeling like this about Annie then I really think it needs to be talked about.” She helped Annie out of the swing too, not surprised when the toddler bounded towards Kara and requested that they went out for lunch. 

“She’s your kid!” Alex chucked, wrapping her arm around Kelly’s waist and pressing a kiss to Scarlett’s head. “All she does is talk about food, that’s a very ‘Kara’ trait!” 

“Can we not talk about this now…” She bit her lip, not that it broke the skin anyways. Her body was flooded with guilt at the idea of being more involved with Annie. The situation was complicated enough as it was already, with Lena’s job as well as Kara being Supergirl, and Andrew practically forcing himself into their lives. She didn’t need to be forcing herself into Annie’s life more than she already was. 

Kelly easily agreed, and Alex followed suit. The agent was usually harsh and cold, but when it came to her wife and daughter, there was no denying that she was the softest woman on this planet. She would risk absolutely everything for her family and she wasn’t afraid to show her weaknesses in order to do so. Kelly, on the other hand, stood her ground in possibly the most respectable way ever. She always knew when she was right and she had no problem putting people in their place if the situation called for it. This was useful to her when she found herself repeatedly defending the fact that her daughter was, in fact, her’s. 

The conversations turned quickly to involve the children, Kara practically begging to take them to the Japanese place that she had planned to take Annie to anyway. In her defence, you can’t just get a child excited about the idea of potstickers and then not deliver. That would just be bad parenting - bad babysitting? She wasn’t sure what to call it anymore. Nevertheless, she won the argument without much of a fight, and the five of them went into her favourite food chain.

Kara couldn’t help herself from checking in on her girlfriend, but she didn’t want to upset her by asking how everything was going - she knew she would need a level head when going in front of the judge. She pulled out her phone and sent a picture of Annie and her plate of potstickers with the caption: ‘The little one has good taste! Thank Rao she isn’t eating salads anymore! I have a lot more to teach her. We love you!!’ She didn’t expect to get any response from her for a while so she sat back with Alex, Kelly and the kids and just enjoyed the time they had together. 

“Kar, how are things going with the day job?” Kelly asked, taking a bite of the noodles that she had ordered. Kara loved that so much about her sister in law, she was always so genuinely interested in her life. It was as if she had gained a close friend alone with a family member and she loved it a lot. 

“Actually, really stressful! I can only ever think about what would happen to Annalise if she was there.” She finally admitted to someone. She wasn’t actually sure how much longer she could hold onto this job now there was a child in her life that she cared about enough and felt so responsible for. 

“I can imagine. I know it’s not the same, but when Alex had therapy it messed with my head a little. I guess I felt a little helpless.” She nodded along with her. They generally weren’t open about that fact, but Kara knew everything since she had been there for all of it, it just seemed pointless to dance around that fact. 

“Do you think you’d want to do the hero job full time?” Alex asked her, dropping her voice a little to help cover the secret and Kara shook her head vigorously. 

“Rao! Definitely not! I need something normal in my life.” She admitted and both women agreed. Annie whined a little as they spoke and Kara sat her in her lap, holding out some rice for her to try. She handed the sippy cup to her as well and cuddled her closely before she continued the conversation. 

“Makes sense! I love a good job search though, so if you need help, you’ve gotta let me know!” Kelly beamed at her and Alex shook her head as if she was trying to avoid all involvement in the topic. 

“I got you the most dangerous job that there is, please don’t ever ask me for help!” She laughed and Annie laughed with her, much to everyone’s surprise. It seemed weird that she would laugh at something so mundane, but it was clear to Kara that she was just feeling left out of the conversation so she turned all of her attention on the little girl in her lap. 

“Kara, did ya know I- uhhh.” Annie started a conversation but didn’t know where to turn with what she had said and she sat almost dumbfounded. Her little mouth hung open and her eyes batted as she looked up at her, seeming to want a way out with a conversation.

“We should get going, we’ve got to get groceries on the way home, but we can plan something for this week!” Alex stood up and kissed Kara’s forehead before giving her the space to say goodbye to Kelly and Scarlett. The ordeal lasted for five or ten minutes before they finally parted and Annie seemed to get her full-bodied confidence back. 

“I want to play swings!” She announced and held out her arms to be spun around by the older woman as they walked down the street to get back to Lena’s house. It was quite a long walk, but Kara knew she couldn’t get too tired and could carry Annie with ease if she needed to. She picked up Annie and swung her by her arms for a couple of seconds before setting her down on the floor.They walked for half an hour before the complaints started and Kara couldn’t help but smile. It seemed dumb to be happy that Annie was complaining, but she felt such immense pride over the fact that she felt comfortable enough to complain to her without Lena around. 

“My feet hurt!” She grunted, sleepy and annoyed that they weren’t back at home yet. Her hair was sticking to her face in the sweaty heat and her cheeks were flushed with annoyance in her adorable toddler glory. 

“What do you say if you don't want to walk anymore?” Kara knelt down next to her in an attempt to stop the impending tantrum. Her efforts seemed to work slightly as Annie trudged towards her and hugged her sadly, her eyes droopy and sleepy already. By the time they had finished up at the park after lunch, they hadn’t ended up leaving until four o’clock - dangerously close to dinner time.

“Please can I go up.” She sighed, her hands playing with Kara’s hair so as to not make eye contact with the woman who was disciplining her. She was very much like her mother in that way. 

“Of course you can, sweet pea.” Kara snuggled her closely, letting out a contented sigh when she heard Annie started to chatter about the trees and cars they walked past - even pointing out a car the same as Lena’s. 

They made it back to the house and Kara felt giddy, as always, as she put her key in the lock and turned it. She had been trusted to be inside Lena’s house, inside her family all this time, and that wasn’t a responsibility that she took lightly. She was surprised when she saw a light on in the kitchen as she took off both of their shoes and walked in. She couldn’t have forgotten to turn the light off when she left, could she?

“Oh Kar, Annie! I wasn’t expecting you home so soon!” Lena turned around the doorway and smiled weakly at them, her eyes red and, only obviously to Kara, smelling of scotch. 

“Mommy! We can have dinner!” Annie chattered excitedly and dragged her back to the kitchen where, thankfully, she had already cooked dinner. She munched through her plate of veggies, potatoes and nuggets before she was taken to bed, Lena insisting that she should be the one to spend time with her after being ‘absent’ all day. 

She came downstairs a few minutes later, laying herself on the couch and letting herself cry. Kara pulled her against her body, soothing her with kisses and back rubs, hoping that she would open up about everything in a second. She was blatantly torn apart over what had happened and Kara didn’t want to press, but she was nervous as hell to hear the bad news. She really cared about Annie and the last thing she wanted was for her to be taken away from Lena. 

“He got shared custody.” Lena practically growled, her green eyes looking venomous and her lips drawn in a tight line across her face. “What the fuck am I meant to do, Kara?” She tried to sound angry but everything came out merely as a weak sob. Her clenched fists trembled and her heart beat erratically as she remained close to Kara’s body.

“I don’t know baby. But we can work it out. Both of us, I’m here with you.” She pulled Lena further into her lap. As much as she didn’t mind helping her, she couldn’t wait for the day that they could just apologetically and fearlessly live their lives. Holding Lena always felt right to her, but this sadness could never be okay. 

“He gets her on Friday nights, brings her back before five on Saturdays… the weekend was for us Kar! The three of us!” 

“Then you can take off a day in the week, baby. You own the company… I’m going to quit my day job and look for another so we can both be around then. We can make things work out.” 

“You’ll tell me about your job later?” Lena asked, her throat burning from her sobs and her eyes stinging every time she blinked. 

“It’s nothing serious, but we can talk it through. Right now, we can just relax, okay? I love you.”

“I love you too… so does Annie, she told me to tell you when she went to sleep.” 

They laid on the couch for the rest of the evening, Lena eventually fell asleep after her long day, her head resting in Kara’s lap. Kara didn’t let herself stop stroking Lena’s hair from the minute she got comfortable, it was their little routine and they both loved it. It brought them calm, despite their tumultuous lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed! I've been pretty sick recently & have literally only been reading books (I've read 8 in the past 5 days) But now I'm back!  
> I have up to chapter 30 planned and i'm excited about it, but there's definitely room for suggestions!  
> Please leave comments! I actually love reading them all  
> Thank you for reading!
> 
> Lu xox


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been ages since I updates!! I'm so sorry!  
> In my defence, it's been a long week!  
> long story short... I broke my glasses and I'm blind as a bat without them so I couldn't really write, then I got into my top choice of uni so i went out to celebrate... and now here we are!  
> Anyways, it took me so long to write this chapter, but no matter what I wrote, I wasn't really a fan of it... so I'm sorry about that  
> I hope you enjoy anyways...  
> (I didn't have time to proof read... sorry)

Of course. Of course Friday came around so quickly. It was literally painful for Lena to drop Annie at daycare before she went off to work, so painful in fact that it wouldn’t have been hard to catch her crying in her office during the day. She had told her daughter almost a hundred times how she would be staying at daddy’s house tonight, and as excited as she was, she knew that as the night came around, she would be terrified and there was nothing she could do about it. She knew Andrew wouldn’t be nice about her having a nightmare and she knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep if she got any kind of text or phone call from him. 

She had chosen to spend the whole week alone in her office or her lab, not ready to open up to anybody about what had happened in court. Sam didn’t need to know. Kara didn’t need to know. The things that were said about her made her seem terrible and she didn’t want to relive that. She didn’t have much of a choice though. Lex’s venomous words often coloured her dreams, making it impossible for her to relax at all. It made her feel stupid, really. When she thought about it, all she could think about was the fact that she had been through a million worse things, but nothing knocks you down like a room full of your family criticising every decision you’ve ever made. 

Kara was growing increasingly worried about her girlfriend. They hadn’t spoken about the hearing, nor had they discussed the fact that Kara hadn’t been back to her own apartment since the first news of court was spoken between the two of them. She didn’t mind staying with the family. In face, she would go as far as to say that she preferred it to staying alone in her apartment, but she didn’t necessarily feel right about living with them forever without speaking about moving in permanently. She thought that getting Lena’s mind off of their situation would be really helpful, especially if Annie wasn’t going to be there, so she had asked if Alex and her family would want to come over for a movie night, a request that they had jumped at. All she had to do now was to ask Lena if she had wanted to - a task which would definitely need some convincing. 

Hey Baby! I’m texting and flying (don’t tell anyone ;)). How do you feel about Alex, Kelly and Scarlett coming over tonight? Thought we could have a girls night? Love you either way - K xox

It wasn't a surprise to Kara when the reply took hours to come through, not that it really mattered to her. She was on Supergirl duty and there weren’t exactly any ‘disasters’ that day that didn’t involve cats and trees. She couldn’t help but worry about the fact that Lena was really overworking herself, but addressing such topics had to be approached delicately. 

If you want to, then that’s fine by me. It would be nice to see family, actually. - L xox

Also, don’t text and fly, I mean it. I need my indestructible girlfriend to be safe. - L xox

So that was it, plans were set. Kara finished her flights and odd jobs as quickly as she could from then on, excited to make it to Lena’s office and pick her up in order to take her home. She landed on the balcony of the office at four o’clock and sighed when she saw Lena with her head against the desk and roughly a million spreadsheets and analytical reports spread across her desk and computer screens. 

“Lee, what’s up.” Kara asked after knocking on the window to make sure she didn’t get freaked out at the sudden intruder - multiple assassination attempts did that to people. She dragged her head off the desk and offered Kara a genuine smile.

“Panicking about Annie, really, but you cheer me up.” She rolled her chair away from the desk and logged out of her computer. She tucked her papers into one bundle, quickly flicking through to make sure they were all in the right order before securing them in a locked drawer in her desk. 

“Well, I’ve been told I have that effect on people.” Kara winked, taking her regular walk around the office as Lena packed up her belongings. “How’s work been?” She asked, making absent minded conversation to fill the silence whilst they got ready to leave. 

“I can’t concentrate, seeing Lex has thrown me off.” She admitted and Kara picked up on her heartbeat. She didn’t say anything about it, doing so would have felt intrusive, but she did get a little closer to her girlfriend, determined to let her know that she was here whenever she needed to talk about it. 

Lena took Kara in her arms and held her tightly for a long while, something she hadn’t done since the day in court. To say Kara felt whole again wouldn't have been an exaggeration. She wrapped her arms tightly around the slightly shorter woman, whispering how she loved her and pressing kisses to the top of her shiny, chocolate hair. 

“He told the judge that Annie needs a man in her life… about how I used to sneak out as a teenager to make out with girls. It’s ridiculous, Kar! Lex… he twisted our whole childhood. And why does it matter if I make out with girls! It’s not my fault that I’m gay! Apparently that doesn’t make me a good mother, though!” She looked up at her girlfriend, her eyes going from angry to soft in a minute’s work. 

“Babe, we can fight this, I know it’s not my case anymore, but I can help you with it?” She asked and Lena shook her head.

“No… no, I want her to have a relationship with Andrew, no matter how much I want him dead.” She chuckled softly. She hated to admit it, but if he was going to be around for her, she would bite the bullet and help them to see each other. She wanted her daughter to grow up with two serious parental figures, even if her mind always drifted to Kelly and Alex, rather than herself and Andrew. 

“Makes sense, but I’ll kick his ass within the hour if you ever ask me to.” Kara promised and Lena couldn’t help her wide smile when she realised Kara wasn’t joking in the slightest. 

“I love you with my whole, lesbian, heart.” She laughed and stood on her tiptoes to kiss those perfect, pink lips. “I’m not ashamed, and we do well with this whole parenting thing.”

“We? As in, me and you? Are good parents?” Kara stuttered over her words, seeming so much like the dork Lena had fallen head over heels for in the courtroom that one day. Her hands were playing nervously with the hem of her shirt and she looked adorably embarrassed to even be in the same room as Lena was, let alone her girlfriend. 

“I mean, I don’t know how serious you are about all of this but you’re around us both all the time and Annie acts around you like she does about me… It’s nothing official but I feel like you deserve to be acknowledged.” Lena tried to shrug it off but Kara could hear her heartbeat and almost feel the panic coursing through her veins as she spoke. Lena was almost always adamant that she had overstepped when it came to talking about their relationship. “Anyways, we should get going…” Lena stood up and walked to her office door, smiling at Jess as she walked past her, hand in hand with Kara. Jess was always baffled by this, her eyebrows always shooting their way up to her hairline when she saw Kara walking out of the office that she was never seen entering - still, she knew better than to question her boss about her relationship. 

Kara was desperate to tell Lena how she felt about Annie, she wanted to let her know how she was growing to love her as a child, but with Lena being so instantly dismissive of the topic, it was decided that she wouldn’t bring it up again. Lena was looking especially fragile that night, her eyes sleepy and her hair messy from where she had been tugging at it whilst she worked. Her shoulders were painfully tense, so much so that Kara could see them tighten and almost lock into place as soon as they got back to her house. 

It didn't take more than half an hour after the couple got home for there to be a knock at the door, Alex and her little family entering before they were even given permission. That was something Lena still wasn’t used to. She felt adrenalin course through her body, thinking that Annie might have been brought home already. She was equally disappointed and glad when she saw her girlfriend’s family instead of her daughter, not wanting her to be afraid of her father, but missing her incredibly. 

Kara appeared to pick up on her anxieties, obviously hearing her heartbeat speed up like crazy, and wrapped her arm around Lena’s shoulders. She dug her hand between her shoulder blades and smiled at herself with the utmost pride when her tense smile loosened and showed genuine happiness. 

“Go and say hello to Auntie Kara and Auntie Lena!” Alex set her daughter on the floor who just toddled over to them in the most adorable way known to man and alien alike. Her tiny ginger ringlets bounced on her head and her little legs wobbled slightly as she made her way over to the couple, her smile proudly showing her new teeth.

“Hi there, pumpkin!” Lena picked her up instantly, settling her in her lap to be cuddled. She snuggled her closely to her chest in the same way she would have if Annie would have been there that evening. 

“Auntie Kara wants cuddles too!” She held her arms out expectantly as Alex and Kelly came to join her in the living room. Alex’s arms were full of blankies, snacks and diapers and Kelly’s arms were full of wine and takeout, all ready for a movie night. They were using Lena’s home cinema - it would have been silly not to, considering the fact that the room itself was practically bigger than Kara’s or her sister’s apartment. 

“So ladies, I have wine, and I was told that you had blankets and movies?” Kelly settled herself on one of the couches, patting the seat next to her for her wife. Alex instantly pulled Kelly into her arms, kissing her temple with more love than Lena had ever seen two parents show for one another. Scarlett was one lucky girl.

“I made Lee buy movies that weren’t about cartoon horses…” Kara giggled and looked over at Lena who had Scarlett fast asleep against her already. Her ginger hair was frizzy across Lena’s chest and her chubby little arms were hugged tightly around the top of her Aunt’s arm, drooling slightly as she snored. The women all exchanged a shocked look with one another, all of them having spent time with the cranky sleeper who seemingly had no trouble resting when she was in the brunette’s arms. “I’m sorry you’re the absolute cutest!” Kara gushed, moving over to them to take a photograph. 

“Marry this one, Kar, the pickiest family member already loves her!” Alex laughed, her normally touch exterior softened considerably around her daughter. 

“I plan to one day!” Kara laughed, grateful that Lena was distracted by the baby as she realised what she had just admitted. Her cheeks flushed bright red and Lena only seemed to draw herself away from Scarlett’s tiny sleeping frame when she heard the three other women erupt into excited chatter. 

Eventually, they put in a movie, deciding that the night called for horror once Scar was sat down in Annie’s room for the night. The situation hurt Lena, it was the first time since she was born that someone else had slept in Annie’s bed. She missed her baby. She missed her bright conversation and her dimpled smiles. She missed her sleepy cuddles and her drawings that she would do almost every evening, even though Lena could never quite decipher them. She thought often about how she hadn’t wanted children, the thought of raising somebody made her feel sick. But now that Annie was in her life, a single night away from her daughter made her feel physically unwell, she needed something like a scary movie to distract her from her real life fears about her little girl. 

Kelly was fast asleep before they even got half way through the movie, not at all phased by the horror. She had curled into her wife, her legs across the couch and her head in Alex’s lap whilst her nimble fingers carded through her hair. Lena was anxious to be left alone with just the sisters, nervous that she could be intruding on their time together - she wasn’t a part of the family, after all.

“Scared, Lena?” Alex laughed at her goodnaturedly, her shoulders bouncing just enough to show her amusement, but not enough to disturb Kelly. 

It was true, Lena looked terrified, but it wasn’t because of the movie. Her head was spinning with thoughts of Annie. Andrew hadn’t once made any effort to contact her about her daughter, and it was well past her bedtime. She was scared for her, what if she couldn't go to sleep, or she missed her bed, or her mom, or even Kara. It had become their new normal to have either one of them put Annie to bed. She wasn’t used to her father in this way. She wasn’t used to his house or his girlfriend, she wasn’t used to him or his lifestyle and she was sure that she would have freaked out at bedtime - if he even adhered to her carefully chosen bedtime. 

“Baby, we can change it over if you don't want to watch it…” Kara cuddled her tightly and kissed her temple. Normally, Lena would be absolutely intoxicated by the smell of her perfume and the way that her fingers moved so gently across her skin to move the hair from her face… but she couldn’t care about any of that right now. 

“I just miss Annie.” She spoke barely above a whisper. “I don’t trust Andrew at all… I just hate feeling so completely helpless.” She groaned, trying to get out of her head and looking up to meet Alex’s sympathetic eyes.

“He’s a terrible man, I won’t sugarcoat it.” Alex admitted. “You’re a great mom, though, you do more than enough to make up for him. She’ll be back by lunch tomorrow and I’m sure that she will let you know whatever she understands that she’s feeling. She trusts you.” Alex promised her, grateful to see a smile spread across Lena’s face upon hearing her words. 

“Lee, she really trusts you more than anyone… it’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen, she’s basically the tiniest best friend you could ask for.” Kara laughed, taking one more look at her girlfriend before pressing a firm, appreciative kiss to her lips.

“Hmmmm.” Lena moved into it, kissing her back happily. “What was that for?” She chuckled a little, happily welcoming her girlfriend's affection. 

“For being a crazy great mom, and girlfriend.” She kissed her forehead, cheeks, nose, everywhere that she could reach from where she was sat. Alex was falling asleep on the other side of the room and the movie had finished playing as it started to get close to midnight. Of course, in her stressed state, Lena was far from sleepy, despite her exhaustion, and snuggled herself into Kara’s body. 

They stayed like that for a while, a blissful silence together before Lena’s phone started to vibrate wildly next to her. Her heart skipped one or one million beats where Andrew’s name illuminated the screen and she excused herself to take the call. She was pacing, her jaw tense and her throat tight as she heard Annie cry in the background of the call.

“Hello? Is Annie okay?” Lena asked, instantly in full mom mode, ready to go to the ends of the earth for her baby. Kara had joined her, also worried about Annie as she wrapped her arms around her girlfriend and listened into the call. The raven-haired woman welcomed the company. 

“She’s really cranky! She won’t sleep, you have to come and get her.” He snapped. “I don’t know how you deal with her all the time, Lena! She won’t shut up for five minutes to let us get some rest!” 

“Don’t you dare speak like that in front of her!” She barked at him, her anger waking Alex who looked at the couple with concern. “What’s she doing right now?” She asked, pulling on her coat and shoes as she spoke, rifling through her cabinets so that she could get her keys to drive. 

“Crying in the living room. I swear to god, Lena, she’s more than a handful. I’ve never seen a kid this stubborn!” He groaned, making noise as if he was walking back through to the living room - only confirmed by the crying getting louder. 

“She’s just scared but - I don’t have the bloody time for this! I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. Text me that you want me to pick her up or use whatever bullshit excuse you want, I don’t want to have to defend myself against this in court!” She snapped and hung up, Kara looking at her in disbelief. How could someone be so lucky with a daughter yet be such a terrible parent, it made no sense to either of them. 

“I’ll drive you over, I know you drank earlier.” Kara offered and Lena nodded, pulling her hair into a ponytail and handing Kara her glasses. It was times like this that Kara loved Lena more than she could possibly put into words. Despite her stress and fear, she had the time to care for Kara’s secret identity, making sure that she was always safe and comfortable. It was the little things. 

“Thank you…” Lena spoke distractedly. She picked up a box of raisins, just in case Annie was hungry, and told Alex that they were going to pick her up. For the most part, Alex was incredibly understanding, but that didn’t mean that Kara could leave the house without being teased for acting like a mother. 

The car ride would have been silent if Kara hadn’t been singing along to the music, playing only Elton John - as per her girlfriend’s request. Lena let her singing wash over herself, trying to keep calm before she got her daughter back. She didn’t want to be tense and angry and upset her further, she certainly didn’t want her little munchkin to think that she was angry with her. 

“It’s this house just here.” Lena pointed at the left side of the road and took a deep breath as the door opened instantly, revealing Andrew and Annie. Her daughter was in her pajamas, her hair hanging either side of her face and skin flushed bright red from distress. 

In an almost instant reaction, Lena jumped from her seat in the car, opening her arms up to scoop Annie into them. She held her closely and rocked her, grateful for her small sniffles which were simply the remnants of her previous hiccupping sobs. “Mommy’s here, Annie-bug! Can you give me a big smile?” She asked her and Annie’s quivering lips turned themselves into a lacklustre smile, obviously still skittish from before. 

“Mommy, I wanna go home.” She whimpered, still forcing her lips into a smile. Her hand was clinging tightly to Lena’s thumb and she was rocking on her feet, something she always did when she was nervous. Lena couldn’t imagine how tired she must be, but she also knew that Annie’s willpower mixed with her fear were a recipe for a sleepless night. 

“Go to Kara and she can get you strapped into the car, okay bug? Give Hippy lots of cuddles as well!” Lena hugged her again, smiling widely as she trotted towards the car, stuffed hippo in hand, only to be picked up by her mother’s girlfriend for even more cuddles. 

Kara could see Lena approaching Andrew from the car window but decided it was best not to look. The last thing she wanted to do was to draw Annie’s attention to the inevitable fight. So, instead, she took the toddler to her car seat and snuggled her into it, laying a blanket over her and playing the music that they normally listened to around the house… it was just Lena’s regular playlist of 70s pop. 

“Wow! I can’t believe how ungrateful she is!” Andrew scoffed, leaning against the door. “ She didn’t even say goodbye to me!” 

“That’s because I’ve taught her that you have to earn someone's respect! And, in all fairness to her, you didn’t say goodbye either!” Lena shrugged, instantly incredibly proud that she had raised Annie the way that she did. 

“She wasn’t the one that paid for dinner, for Christ's sake!” He stormed back into the house, slamming the door behind him as he went, obviously too full of himself to admit that his three year old daughter didn’t actually do anything wrong. Pathetic, that's what he was. 

By the time she was back in the car, Annie had brightened up in the way that children did. Her tears were long forgotten, and her focus was now fully on Kara and the music as she tried to sing along with her. Of course, the words she was singing weren’t even remotely close to the ones on the track, but it was adorable nonetheless. She strapped herself into the car, not daring to speak for fear of interrupting the song being performed by her girlfriend and daughter. 

It was one of those moments where Lena was truly grateful for everything that she had. There was no fear of Lex or Andrew, no stress from work, nowhere she had to be and nothing that she had to do, all because Kara had come into her life and swept both her and her daughter off of their feet in the way that only Kara Danvers knew how to do. Life was simple now, now that they were happy, now that Kara was around more and Annie was happy with the two of them. Life was enjoyable when they spent time with Auntie Sammie or Auntie Alex and Auntie Kelly… Lena wasn’t sure what it was meant to feel like, but it felt like she had a family. 

Happy. That’s the only way she could describe it. Her evening had been terrible, but the feeling in her chest right now which made her smile all the way to her eyes is something that she could never trade. Happiness, previously a foreign concept, was now something that she grasped with both hands, pulling it all the way into her soul until there was no way it could disappear. Not if Annie and Kara stayed in her life.

“Mommy, mama? Can we go home?” Annie asked and Lena felt her heart swell with adoration before dropping violently to the pit in her stomach. It was fear now. Fear of losing everything she had worked towards. Fear of Kara not wanting to be this serious… fear of not being happy.

“Sure thing, sweetie.” Kara nodded, her body flooded with a similar feeling of dread. She didn’t want this to move too quickly… she was serious about this and if Lena wasn't ready yet… that would be an incredibly difficult conversation. She squeezed her girlfriend’s hand over the centre console as if to tell her that she had heard what Annie had said, wanting her to know she wasn’t avoiding it, rather not bringing it up in front of the, already emotional, Annie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed!  
> sorry it took so long & it wasn't a great chapter... I'll try and update again tomorrow to make up for it.  
> Let me know what you think in the comments  
> thank you or reading, 
> 
> Lu xox


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I'm back!  
> Life has been stressful but I promise I'm not abandoning this work!  
> I hope you enjoy - sorry for the wait

Lena didn’t go back to bed that night. She was stressed, her mind racing and her heart pounding. She knew Kara could hear it but there was nothing she could do about it. She was grateful to see that Alex, Kelly and Scarlett had left by the time that they had got home, but she wasn’t grateful for the fact that Annie was more awake than ever. She made her way through to the kitchen with Annie, making her some warm juice to hopefully settle her down a little bit. She wasn’t angry at her for being awake, but it would be better for both of them if she got rest now, rather than being tired and grouchy the following day.

“Mommy, can you sing me a song. Daddy said no.” Annie slumped sadly in her chair at the table, taking small sips from her cup as she watched her mother try to make herself look busy so Kara wouldn’t notice her stress. Kara noticed, though. She saw Lena’s fidgety hands and her exaggerated, slow blinking. There was no way that she could have missed the way that Lena fiddled with her necklace - a sure sign of her anxieties. 

“How about I sing you a song after you finish your juice? We can make sure you’re really really sleepy and that you have good dreams!” Kara sat in the chair next to Annie, dropping a kiss on her forehead as her eyes drooped a little. She tried desperately to fight her tiredness, her tiny fists rubbing at her eyes in an attempt to stay awake for longer. Needless to say, neither Kara or Lena bought into her acting and she was taken up to bed almost immediately after.

“What book should we read?” Kara asked her, pointing to the bookshelf on the other side of the room. Annie shook her head sadly, making it a point to tell Kara that she was promised a song instead of a book. Her mind was racing over the thought of being around Annie after being called mama, so she sang the first song that came to mind - a kryptonian lullaby. She was asleep within minutes, but Kara stayed in the room for a little while, wondering how she could bring up what Annie had said to the two of them.

Eventually, she left the room and was shocked to see that Lena wasn’t anywhere to be seen in the apartment. That was, at least, until she looked for her on the balcony. It was something Kara had never seen before, let alone thought she would ever see. Lena Luthor, standing on the balcony in Kara’s oversized shirt and her underwear with a packet of cigarettes in her hand, and one between her lips. Kara didn’t know that she smoked, but her girlfriend didn’t try to hide the offending object from her, holding onto it as if it were the very thing that was providing her life in that moment.

“Take my sweater…” Kara handed it over, taking a seat on the furniture next to her girlfriend. She couldn’t blame her for being stressed, after all, the night hadn’t been the easiest thing for either of them. 

“Are you sure?” Lena asked, taking the final drag of the cigarette before lighting another one and placing it between her lips. 

“Of course I’m sure, baby, unless you don’t want it?” She asked, holding it out in front of the shivering woman who took it gratefully this time, breathing deeply when the smell of Kara surrounded her. It was the thing she loved most about having her around all the time, everything had started to smell like her girlfriend, it was a lovely mixture that could only be described as freshly baked bread and something utterly sweet. It was so perfectly Kara. 

They sat in silence for a while as Lena made her way through the packet in her hands, each drag taking an ounce of weight from her shoulders. Kara watched her nervously, seemingly ready to get told to leave as soon as Lena felt ready to talk. Maybe she should have started the conversation but something about Lena in that moment was more beautiful than anything she had seen before. Her eyes almost lit up bright green in the moonlight, and her thick, dark hair was glittering under the stars. Kara had been away from her planet for so long, but the vision in front of her reminded her so completely of home. Lena was incredible like that.

“I think we need to talk-.”

“Do you think we should talk-.” 

Lena and Kara spoke in unison, the brunette’s voice more rough and the blonde’s voice shakier. They both shared a nervous smile before Lena took the opportunity to speak again. They had been growing together as a couple for a long while now and she knew that Kara would be unlikely to leave over something so small, so she knew she could speak about this with her, despite her fears. 

“Before I say what I want to say, I want you to know that I’m scared to say it… okay? And I’ve wanted to talk about this for a little while but it’s a delicate subject and-” She stuttered, her fingers playing absentmindedly with her split ends, splitting them from root to scalp as some kind of distraction. 

“Take a breath, baby, we have all the time in the world to sort this out.” Kara nodded, holding a hand out to her girlfriend which was gratefully accepted. 

“You heard what Annie called you, right?” Lena asked, barely able to find her words, yet sounding confident as she spoke. She had to reassure herself that Kara loved her - she knew Kara loved her. 

“Mama.” Kara nodded, taking one of Lena’s hands in her own before she spoke again. She pressed a kiss to the back of her hand and presented her girlfriend with her award-winning smile. “I won’t lie to you, babe, I was so proud to hear her say that. I know I haven’t been through half of the things that the two of you have gone through together, but I really do love her. She’s like a tiny version of you with all her little opinions and the way she smiles about horse facts every time she hears a new one. I’m really proud to be in her life and I’m more than proud that she recognises me on a level even remotely similar to you.” 

“Kara I-”

“No, can I finish please? I’m sorry but this is too important, baby, if you stop me now I’m not sure I’ll ever get the confidence to say this again.”

“Go ahead, you can say anything to me.” Lena nodded, linking her fingers with those of her girlfriend. She felt the hot skin in her cold palms and sighed gently. If things could stay the way they already were, Lena had no doubt that she would be happy. She took in the appearance of Kara from her perfect hair, to her worried crinkle, to her reassuring smile. There was truly no way of knowing what she was going to say next. 

“So, I’m more than happy to be in her life. I actually want to be in her life, you know, I want it so much. I like being called mama, and I like cooking dinner for both of you and tucking her into bed at night… I like coming home to you after a Supergirl emergency, and I like you coming home to us after your work days… Rao! This is really hard to say Lena, and I promise that I didn’t ask her to call me mama, but if she wants to, and you’re okay with it, there’s nothing I want more than to be her mama!” Kara ranted, her cheeks crimson. She was blushing so furiously about what she had admitted to that she could barely even register what Lena said next. 

“Move in with us.” She said in a matter of fact tone, for once, her voice not wavering with nerves. Lena was sure in her decision. She was in love with the woman in front of her. She knew her future lied with Kara, and she had no hesitations bringing Kara into Annie’s life in a more permanent way, so long as it was okay with the two of them, it was okay with her. She had to admit that she had a very hard time saying no to her daughter’s (and her girlfriend’s) puppy dog eyes. 

“Wait… you’re- you’re serious?!” The blonde gasped, her heart racing. She didn’t know that she was chanting ‘yes’ or squeezing her girlfriend a little too tightly until she heard an excited, but slightly pained squeak, from her girlfriend who was bundled in her arms.

“I’m deadly serious!” Lena chuckled, capturing Kara’s lips in a soft and loving kiss. “I’m asking Annie first though, this is just as much her house as it is mine… not that I can see it being any issue!” Lena spoke and laughed harder at the Kryptonian who was nodding like a bobblehead next to her.

“Yeah! Yeah of course!” She picked up Lena happily and carried her back through to the bedroom. She set Lena on the bed who waited expectantly for Kara’s return, unbuttoning the top of her shirt when the door swung back open.

“Okay! I wanted to show you this the other day but then I wasn’t too sure how to do it… but I kinda got some things printed… I didn’t want you to think it was weird or anything but Annie made me some drawings and I got them on a canvas… I was gonna put them in my kitchen but now I don’t know… where should we put them?!” Kara rambled excitedly, spreading the three canvases across the sheets, not noticing how Lena had been waiting for her. 

“I have never been more in love with you!” Lena chuckled and tied her hair back up, removing her shirt anyways in favour of being comfortable. 

“Lee, maybe we could put one in the living room? And one in here? Oh! And we can have one in the spare room! That way, people can see how talented our little pea is!” She moved around the bedroom, holding the canvas up to different walls and eyeing it as if it was the most important decision she would ever make in her entire life.

“You know, Supergirl, for someone who makes life or death decisions on a daily basis, you really are putting a lot of effort into a toddler’s artwork.” Lena teased, not objecting when Kara placed the art on the vanity and walked over to their bed. 

“If there’s one job I take seriously, it's the job of loving the Luthors.” She slipped into bed behind her girlfriend, breathing everything in from that moment as if she wanted to savour it forever. She didn’t miss the way that Lena’s hands settled over her own, seemingly using Kara’s insane body heat to warm herself up. (The CEO -who had multiple degrees- was very proud to come up with the phrase ‘space heater’ because… you know… she’s an alien and she's always warm). She fell in love with the fact that Lena still smelled exactly the same, despite her chain smoking earlier. Unlike you might think, Lena Luthor smelled like flowers and a little bit like children’s art supplies. It may sound strange, but Kara loved the fact that, even down to the tiniest detail, Lena was first and foremost a mother to Annie. 

“I love you right back.” She nuzzled into Kara’s chest, quickly finding her place on her girlfriend’s body. Kara loved the warm weight of Lena on her chest, appreciating how she always opted to use Kara instead of her pillows when they were together. “Welcome home, Darling.” She tilted her chin up to reach her lips and smiled as the Kryptonian kissed her back. 

Despite the horrendous start to the night, Lena was practically over the moon by the time that she managed to get to sleep, wrapped so tightly in Kara’s arms. The sun streamed through the windows but neither woman woke up to it, instead they basked in the sleep they were managing to squeeze in. That was, at least, until Annie raced to their bedroom, knocking at the door incessantly until she got a reply. 

“Come in, Bug!” Lena called to her, pressing one final kiss to Kara’s neck before the door was opened. 

“Mommy! Mama! I sleeped really good! Can I go back to daddy now?!” She jumped up onto the bed, haphazardly weaving her way in between her mommy and mama as she spoke. Much like her mother, she took her place on Kara’s chest, cuddling so closely to her and playing with her blonde hair as it was something she had never seen before. 

“Oh baby, not today! But I’m sure you can see him next week.” Kara told her, nudging Lena’s feet under the covers in a way that almost showed off her parenting skills that she had developed. She was absolutely elated to wake up in the way that she did, one of Lena’s hands in her own and their daughter happy to see them both.

“Okay.” Annie nodded, wriggling from Kara’s chest to cuddle her mommy and say good morning. Twice the moms meant twice the cuddles and that was something she was incredibly happy about. “We can have fruit and ‘ranola then!” She nodded happily and the small action broke both womens’ hearts. Really Annie should be more upset about her father, and they didn’t want her to get used to being let down by him, otherwise people would always take advantage of her. 

“You want granola for breakfast? Mommy had trained you well, huh?” Kara laughed. As a child, she would have most likely have opted for something like pancakes or waffles to sustain herself, but the toddler was practically begging for fruit first thing in the morning. She was strangely proud of Lena for this. After everything the mother and daughter had been through together, Annie had come out of it as the most remarkable little girl. She never complained about unnecessary things and knew the house rules seemingly better than anyone, but at the same time she was adorably bubbly and so excited to spend time with both of her moms. 

“Yep! And I want strawberries please.” Annie nodded, her messy black hair bouncing on top of her head.

“And, I suppose you want orange juice too?” Lena reached out to tickle her daughter who nodded excitedly before squealing and squirming away from being tickled. Her laugh rang out through the bedroom and Kara was struck with the feeling of ultimate domestic bliss as she sat there with the two people that she loved most in the world. She let herself watch them for just a second as it all unfolded, the happiness obvious on both of their faces as they all woke up together. Their life was good, and they were happy.

“Go and wash your hands then, baby, mama and I will see you in the kitchen for breakfast in a minute!” Lena squeezed the tiny brunette in a hug that Kara ultimately couldn’t stop herself from being a part of. 

“Okay! Thank you mommy and mama!” She jumped off the bed after she had wiggled herself free from the hug and her tiny feet carried her all the way to her bathroom to wash her hands.

Lena took their free moment to move closer to her girlfriend, pulling her impossibly close and kissing her with as much force as she could muster. Their hug was more of a prolonged squeeze and their kiss was intense, despite how brief it was. It all ended with another peck and an even tighter squeeze.

“Not that I’m complaining… I’m not complaining at all! But, what was all of that for?” Kara laughed, kissing Lena over and over, making the younger woman physically unable to reply as her lips became preoccupied and her brain turned to useless jelly. 

“Mmm.” She tried to deepen the kiss, only to be cut off by a finger pressing against her lips. 

“I asked why you kissed me!” Kara couldn’t help but beam at her, her smile was one of sunshine and all of the good things in the world.

“Because I’m in love with you and I’m proud to have you in our daughter’s life.” Her smile matched that of Kara’s, something which was nearly unheard of for a Luthor. The blonde’s cheeks erupted in a blush of fire-engine-red, so much so that she dipped her head in embarrassment. They had woken up into such a blissful life and there was nothing that could bring the mood down. 

“Kiss me again, please.” Kara leaned across the bed. Lena was already standing up so that she could put her day clothes on and make breakfast, and despite her super speed, Kara was still a little slow getting ready in the mornings. 

“Last one! Then we have to make the kid breakfast! I don’t want my baby starving!” Lena teased and Kara let herself be pulled forwards, loving the way that her girlfriends fingers rested on her cheeks as they kissed over and over. 

“Nope, we aren’t letting our kid starve! Come on!” Kara took the position of authority this time, dragging Lena from the room by her hand. Whilst Annie’s mommy was dressed in leggings and a t-shirt, her mama hadn’t yet taken the liberty to dress herself, deciding that her pajama shirt and shorts would do just fine until they had finished with breakfast… and the fact that she looked so beautiful in them meant that Lena simply could not disagree with her choices. 

“Sweet pea! Breakfast is ready!” Kara called upstairs, happy to hear light footsteps as they trotted down the stairs. “Do you really find the morning crossword that exciting?” 

“You read the articles, I do the puzzles… it can be our thing!” Lena teased her, pushing her thick rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose as she focussed on the clue in front of her. “Kar… what’s the name of ‘National City’s resident superhero?” Lena smirked, biting on the end of her pen. 

“You’re telling me that you’ve never heard of her? I think that’s a little sexist, I know you know who Superman is!” She teased in return, plonking Annie in front of the bowl of food which she instantly started to devour - after many thanks to her mother. 

“Well, I’ve tried Kara and Kara Danvers… but neither seem to fit… and it can’t be Zor-El because hyphens aren’t allowed.” She moved her dark hair from her face, barely looking as she caught her daughter's cup of juice from tumbling over. It was a parenting reflex that she was most proud of, practically able to stop any mess before it became an issue.

“You’re being annoying, Miss Luthor!” Kara tossed a piece of granola at her and, because of those damn mother reflexes, she caught it and popped it in her mouth with a smirk.

“I’m Luthor!” Annie beamed, desperate to get into the adult conversation. She was perched on the edge of her seat, smiling wide enough for both of her dimples to be on full display. 

“You most definitely are! It’s a very nice name for very nice people.” Kara made an effort to look her girlfriend in the eye as she spoke and she couldn't help notice the sincere smile that was offered to her. It had been a lifetime of shielding for Annie, always trying to keep her hidden from the dark past of her family, so to have someone who shared a different name tell her that being a Luthor was a good thing meant the world to her. 

“Mommy is super nice and a Luthor!” Annie continued to explain before she chugged her juice, the cup clenched tightly between her two little hands. 

“Thank you baby, but remember to drink that slowly or you’ll get the hiccups!” Lena chastised lightly, getting up to pour herself another coffee, dropping the newspaper in her girlfriend’s lap on the way past, a small note written next to the crossword.

‘Can I ask the bug about you moving in?’

Kara’s eyebrows knitted together adorably and the brunette couldn’t help but stare as she poured her second cup fresh from the machine. Before she was a mother who ran a Fortune 500 company, she didn’t see the point in drinking a lot of coffee, but now her life revolved around a toddler, mountains of work, and worrying about her superhero girlfriend, there was nothing she welcomed more in the mornings than a cup of dark, rich coffee. As unhealthy as her habits were, even the billionaire had to admit that drinking coffee was a much better way to stay awake in comparison to the tequila shots she used to wake her up when she was still in college.

She let the steam cloud her glasses, happily watching her two favourite girls through the artificial fog when she saw Kara’s elated but nervous nod. This was a big change for them, yet it didn’t feel strange to bring it up over something as mundane as a morning meal - after all, normal family conversations happened over meal times. And they were a family now - disjointed but blended. 

“Hey, Annie-bug, can your mama and I talk to you about something, please?” Lena asked, distracting the happy girl from attempting to feed the stuffed hippo which always took its rightful place on the table during meal times. Some conversation always arose about how he was a family member so he absolutely had to come to every meal with them, even if he couldn’t open his mouth to eat. Who were Lena and Kara to argue with the concept of family? 

“Yeah!” She chirped, tugging her stuffed animal into her arms and tucking it under her chin. The grey animal was used as a head rest as she cocked her head and pulled back her hair. It was her newest thing to do after she had learnt about how her ears were made to hear things - she always made sure to uncover them when she wanted her moms to know that she was listening. 

“So, you know that Kar- Mama has been sleeping here a lot recently?” Lena started, continuing when her simple statement was met with a nod. “Do you like it when she sleeps over?” Kara smiled at this, the expertise Lena showed when talking to her daughter. She never explained things in a way that would degrade Annie, rather speaking to her like an adult whilst still using terms that she would understand. 

“Yeah! I love mama here.” She nodded along happily, trying to reach across the table to grab another strawberry from the bowl. She might not have been directly related to Kara, but she most definitely inherited her appetite. 

“I love being here with you too, sweetie!” Kara reassured her, scooting the fruit bowl closer before she let Lena carry on. 

“How would you like it if mama was here all the time? She’d sleep in mommy’s room and be here for breakfast and dinner with us every day? And she would be here for movie nights?” She briefly detailed what it would mean if Kara moved in, already decided between the two of them that even if Annie agreed, they would keep renting Kara’s place for a little while just in case Annie really hated it once it was in action. 

“And mama can make the cookies with me?” She asked, her jaw falling slack as iff this proposition was the most glorious thing on this planet. Her bright green eyes fell on her mama, almost as if she was asking if this was a real possibility, the glimmer in them making it seem like it was a dream come true. 

“Maybe we can make cookies at the weekend?” Kara suggested, smiling almost as wide as the toddler. She wouldn’t want to admit it, but the feeling of being this accepted by Annalise was almost as amazing as the feeling of being called mama - she felt a kind of love and importance that she didn’t quite know was possible before. 

“I want mama to stay!” She decided, reaching her arms up to her mama for a hug, burying her face deep in her hair. She told her she loved her and pressed a sloppy kiss to her cheek, just like she did every day with her mommy.

“I guess we should go and help mama get her things then?” Lena asked, taking her glasses off as if the thought of leaving the house when she was wearing them was a crime. “Do you think you can carry mama’s things?” 

“Yep!” She giggled excitedly, popping her ‘p’ as she spoke. “I’m strong just like Supergirl!” She exclaimed before she was sandwiched in her first family hug ever. It was bliss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked it!  
> I wont promise when I'll update next because I'm unreliable...  
> Kudos & comments are welcome and very much appreciated!  
> I hope you all have a wonderful day/week/month/year  
> thank you for reading
> 
> Lu xox


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FILLER CHAPTER!   
> just to tie up loose ends that I kinda left unspoken...  
> Hope you enjoy!

They walked down the street, hand in hand in hand as they swung the toddler between them. Her laughs were bright, just like the sunshine that was her mother and her steps were often replaced by joyful skips. Kara had dressed her that morning, letting her pick out her absolute favourite leggings and t-shirt. It was printed with the faces of cats, which is what happened to be Annie’s newest obsession. It took her mama a while to understand that toddlers were never actually too sure of what they liked, so Annie’s horse obsession had seemingly flipped overnight: cats were the newest thing for the toddler. 

Lena was wearing mom jeans and one of Kara’s many hoodies that she had stolen from her since she had moved in with them. This one was her favourite, though, it was a pale grey with some pointless writing down the sleeve. She would never tell Kara that it was her favourite because it was the one she was wearing the first time she had seen her outside of work. Kara loved it though, it made her heart swell five times the size when she saw her girlfriend put it on before she left the house. 

“Mommy, I want a cat!” Annie let go of their hands and ran over to the window of the pet shop, almost beyond herself with excitement when she saw her favourite animals in their cages. 

“Annalise Samantha Luthor! Come back here at once!” Lena snapped as she watched Annie run through the busy street away from the two of them. She hated the way that Annie’s lip started to quiver at the sound of her mother’s panicked yelling, but she had to shock her in order for her to not want to run away again.

“Mommy…” She whimpered, wrapping her arms around herself and letting out a weak cry.

“No! Annalise, you will not run away from me or your mama again, do you understand?!” She held a hand out to Annie as a kind of peace offering.

“Yes mommy.” She crossed her legs tightly, nervous and sad at being shouted at. In Lena’s defence, had she looked at her daughter a second later, it was highly likely that she would have disappeared into the crowd, and there was no way that Lena could live on this earth without her.

“Annie, I think you should apologise to me and your mommy. You did a really bad thing by running away from us.” Kara looked towards her, not realising they were being too hard on her until it was too late. She moved against the window off the pet shop, sobbing so hard that she started to pee herself.

It had been too long since Lena had dealt with an incident like this in public since her daughter had been potty trained for nearly two years. The shouting instantly turned into comfort as Annie repeatedly said sorry. Kara had never seen a child like this, most kids would enjoy breaking the rules a little, but Annie just seemed to be so afraid of everything all of the time.

“Baby, have you had an accident?” Lena asked but was met with a silence, only broken apart by the sound of sniffles. Annie was staring through the window at the cats, watching them jump and play around on the scratching posts, too scared to look up at her moms for fear of being yelled at again. 

“Pumpkin, it’s okay if you’ve had an accident. Mommy and I just want to help to clean you up! We can go to the museum after you’re in your comfy new clothes!” Kara tried to talk to her as well, having a little success as she tore her eyes away from the cats, but still didn’t speak. 

“I’m going to carry you home, okay, bug? And then we can go to the museum.” Lena picked her up, not caring that she was getting pee on her clothes, just worrying about her daughter feeling comfortable and loved. Annie nodded her head and nuzzled into Lena’s shoulder, watching the world go by as they walked back. 

The couple gave her a quick shower and dressed her in some different clothes when Kara’s watch started to beep relentlessly. She looked to Lena with urgency and they both got up from the floor of Annie’s room to talk. Kara’s eyes were full of regret as she spoke, feeling insanely guilty for missing out on their family day, especially when it was so close to the day that they had met last year. She fumbled a little with her shirt, not wanting to use her superspeed around the house as she had to put on her supersuit. 

“Emergency?” Lena asked, undoing the buttons for her frantic girlfriend.

“I’m afraid so, babe.” She sighed, turning round so that her cape could be secured to her more easily. “Can you stay in with Annie today? There’s a huge alien threat spreading across the city and the last thing I want is for my girls to be caught up in it.” She spoke quickly, her tongue barely able to wrap itself around all of the words she was trying to say. 

“Of course, of course I will! Thank you, Supergirl.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed her deeply. She always got nervous before her girlfriend went into fights, feeling the need to almost say goodbye every time just in case something happened to her.

“I’ll be home for dinner! I promise.” She kissed Lena to punctuate every word. “Tell Annie I had to go and do something super exciting… I’ll bring something home for her… Is a donut okay?” She zipped her boots, obviously stalling the fact that she had to leave her family.

“You’re her mom, you can decide what’s okay!” Lena chucked before she ushered her away. “Go, I’ll make sure we cook something nice for you tonight! I love you, Supergirl.” She smirked and watched Kara fly into the distance with a quiet ‘I love you’. 

She reached for her phone once she was alone, telling Sam to come over for the day. She was scared they would be more affected than she was since she was living in the heart of the city - unlike Lena was. Sam had gratefully accepted, telling Lena that she would be over within half an hour. 

“Mommy! I drawed mama a picture come and see it!” Annie called from her bedroom and Lena was up the stairs in a shot. Annie loved to draw, especially for her moms. She was sprawled across the floor when Lena saw her, her legs crossed at the ankles as she leant on her elbows to reach the paper she was scribbling on. From what she could tell from the artwork, there were three people - composed of different sized sticks and circles, and a sun which took up the majority of the top left corner. She was biting her lip in concentration, despite the fact it didn’t help her stay inside the lines at all. 

“Anns, that’s so pretty! Mama will love it when she gets back from work!” She sat on the floor next to her and watched as she added more and more colour to the sheet.

“Thank you, mommy!” She continued with her ‘masterpiece’ until the front door unlocked and Ruby made her way into Annie’s bedroom, instantly setting herself up to start drawing with her. She left the children alone with only the baby monitor just in case something went wrong, and went downstairs to greet Sam.

“Jesus, Lena, look how much your place has changed since the girlfriend moved in!” Sam chuckled, moving closer so that she could hug her friend. “I haven’t seen you since you went to court! You have to catch me up on all of the gossip!” Sam sat down, handing Lena a coffee that she had bought her on the way over. 

“Samantha! I don’t think I told you!” Lena burst almost immediately, tucking her legs up on the couch so that they were crossed as she got ready to spill the gossip. “Annie calls her mama now!” 

“You’re kidding? Kara doesn’t mind?” 

“She loves it, actually, she’s the one that asked if it was okay… she really loves us!”

“Supergirl is super in more ways than one, huh?” She chuckled, watching Lena’s eyebrows shoot into her hairline.

“Shit! I forgot I told you about that… I didn’t tell Kara I told you!” She buried her head in her hands. It was the kind of reaction she always had when she realised she had made a mistake. A mistake in the Luthor household as a child meant that she would be ridiculed or neglected for days - and the feeling of dread was a hard one to break after a lifetime of abuse. 

“I’m sure Kara’s chill with it! She really loves you, if it helps, I haven’t told anyone about it, Not even Rubes.” 

“What if she isn’t okay with it though?” 

“She’s head over heels, she’s gonna be okay with it!” Sam laughed at her again, used to talking to the Luthor about things like this. “We can’t worry about this any more because i brought all of us some ice cream and we’re making banana splits, if you’re interested?” 

“You don’t know what it means to eat healthily, do you?” 

“Absolutely not!” Sam practically cackled with her laughter as she dragged her best friend through to her own kitchen. True to her word, Sam had brought everyone’s favourite flavour of ice cream and they were almost bursting out of the freezer. There was chocolate for Annie, caramel for Ruby, strawberry for Sam, and Mint for Lena.

They called the girls downstairs who ran in the room beaming together and holding hands. Ruby was noticeably taller than Annie but they still both looked adorably small. Annie had forced them both into matching plastic heels and necklaces and they were getting on with each other like a house on fire. They both gushed at the idea of ice cream, Annie scrambling to get on the chair, pulling Ruby up with her so that they could both tuck in.

The mothers stood there with smiles plastered on each of their faces as their daughters sat with the two bowls between them, both sharing the portions of ice cream that they had been given. Nobody was expecting the door to swing open and reveal a slightly disheveled, but still smiling, Kara.

“Mama!” Annie tore off from her seat, practically pouncing on the woman who just arrived.

“Hiya, sweet pea! Oh I missed you a lot today!” She cuddled Annie close to her chest before she realised they had guests over. “Hi Sam, hi Ruby!” She waved, carrying Annie back to her seat so that she could finish eating.

“Kara, hi.” Lena smiled in the same way that she always did when she was anxious. It didn’t quite meet her eyes and her cheeks still weren’t blessed by her beautiful dimples. “Are you okay?” She quickly looked her over for injuries before deciding that she wasn’t hurt.

“I’m okay, baby, I was only at the office.” Kara gave her a look. It was one that meant for her to drop the subject, but she knew she couldn’t. 

“Sam knows… about you.” Lena made some kind of weird Supergirl action, making her girlfriend laugh out loud. 

“When did she find out?” She bit her lip and looked at her girlfriend. Sam was on the other side of the room, her hands nervously balled into fists. 

“The day that we had that big fight, I didn’t mean to tell your secret, it just kinda slipped out! And it’s not an excuse, but I was upset and scared and I couldn’t be completely alone again Kar.” She wouldn’t make eye contact, it was a nervous trait she had learnt after hiding away for her entire childhood.

“I wish you would have told me.” Kara sighed, kissing the top of Lena’s head as she pulled her into a hug. “I’m not mad, you don’t need to apologise - I can’t be angry for you wanting to have someone to talk to, but please, tell me next time if anything happens, okay?” She tightened her grip and stroked down Lena’s back. 

“You’re not mad?” She gasped, burying her face in Kara, able to feel her supersuit under the thin fabric of her everyday clothes. 

“Absolutely not! I really hurt you that day, and I trust Sam anyway! I don’t blame you, and I don’t want you to blame yourself either.” She promised her, tilting her chin up so that they could share a kiss. 

“Right then, ladies! I’m glad everything’s sorted, but I don’t need to be here whilst you make baby number two, so I’m gonna head out with my kid! Good night!” Sam chuckled at her own joke, only earning a middle finger from her best friend and a polite but nervous laugh from Kara. Annie came in as soon as Ruby had left, staring up at her mothers with her puppy dog eyes.

“You want dinner?” Kara chuckled and Lena pushed her away. 

“Mama is gonna go and take a shower because she smells like… something bad… and we are going to cook dinner, right Annie?” Lena referenced the alien goo which was still clinging to her girlfriend’s hair despite having been forced to take multiple showers at the DEO once she had finished the fight. 

“Okay, okay, I take the hint!” Kara laughed and ran from the kitchen up to shower. She came back down an hour later, her hair braided and her pajamas on as she sat down to the table for the meal. She instantly took Annie’s plate to cut the food for her.

“Mama I drawed you a picture!” Annie instantly started talking, thrusting the piece of paper towards her mom proudly. 

“I adore it, sweetie! I’ll put it on the fridge!” She took a huge bite of her food and pinned it to the fridge. It was weird for her to come home to such domesticity after a huge fight, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. They bathed and put Annie to bed before they ended up together on the couch in the same way that they did every evening. 

“I’m exhausted… and hungry.” Kara groaned, draping herself over Lena’s lap. She was too tired to stay sat up as she flicked on the movie that they had been talking about watching for so long. It wasn’t necessarily one that Kara would enjoy, but it was the kind of nerdy science movie that her girlfriend adored, and she wanted to be there to see her face light up as she watched it and corrected the scientific inaccuracies. 

“I’ll order you a few pizzas if you cuddle me more.” Lena ordered them as she spoke, taking in the smell of her girlfriend who had now laid her entire body in Lena’s. They never usually set like this, Lena was usually the one on the receiving end of the cuddles, but she couldn’t help enjoying holding the blonde girl in her arms for once. 

“I couldn’t love you any more than I already do.” Kara giggled happily, tugging a blanket over the two of them as she started to devour the pizzas, two slices at a time. 

“Really? Because I love you more and more every day.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been busy!   
> I'm moving out in a few weeks so I'm super busy trying to sort all of that out... I'm moving out of my parent's house so........  
> I dont really like this chapter but it was needed so... the next update will be better! 
> 
> thank you for your comments, kudos & reads,  
> Lu xox


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!  
> I hope you enjoy!!  
> I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO PROOFREAD I'M SORRY!!!!

Lena was working ridiculously hard at LCorp whilst Annie was at her father’s house. She had taken some time to adjust, but had eventually got used to spending the night with her father and his girlfriend. Lena hated the idea of her spending time with him, but she couldn’t be angry about the fact that her daughter was happy, so instead, she took all of the extra time that she was given, and dedicated it to her work.

Her mind was buried deep within her clinical trials and one of her hands was typing frantically as the other reached for her empty coffee cup. She let out a groan at the lack of drink, but continued to work despite her disappointment, telling herself it would be worth it if her treatment helped even one person. She closed her eyes to try and destress quickly, stilling her frantic hands for just a moment before turning her full attention back to her computer.

“Good evening, baby.” Lena spoke tiredly as the time rolled over to seven o’clock.

“You heard me land?” Kara asked, the surprise heavy in her voice. She almost always made her girlfriend jump when she arrived for her surprise visits. After three months of Annie going to her dad’s house, Lena had got used to seeing the blonde beauty on her balcony at exactly seven o’clock every Friday night.

“I just know you too well.” She tilted her head backwards and puckered her lips expectantly, only to be met with a whimper from Kara who moved over to her couch and ignored the obvious request for a kiss. “Well, you might be the worst girlfriend in the world.” She huffed playfully and turned back to her work.

“Lee, I want to talk to you, please.” Kara looked at her nervously, ringing her hands in her lap as she spoke.

“Oh… oh yeah of course, take a seat.” She nodded towards the couch that she was already sat on, mentally hitting herself before her tongue found its way around the words to correct her mistake. “I know you’re already sitting… just feel free to speak, if you want to.” She folded the corner of the paper she was looking at, giving the blonde her full attention.

Kara’s hands were folded in her lap, her usual strong stance was replaced with sloped shoulders and the crinkle between her brows. She was fiddling with the charm on her necklace that her mother had left her from Krypton, something she always told Lena was the most sacred thing on this planet. It was mightily strange for someone with unimaginable super powers to look so defeated, so the brunette made her way to sit next to Kara, taking her hands into her own lap and holding them close. It was a gesture of reassurance which was very much appreciated by the Kryptonian.

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to agree with me, and I know how hard you work - I don’t want to make a joke of that!” Kara prefaced her argument

“Absolutely not, I’ll always give you my honest opinion.” Lena promised, squeezing her hands three times in their subtle way to say ‘I love you’ to one another.

“I want to quit my job to be around more.” She spoke barely above a whisper. “And I know that you would be able to support us financially, but I don’t want you to think that I’m taking advantage of you.”

“I would never think that, darling, but can we talk about why? I always thought you loved working with kids?”

“I did! I used to adore it, but that was until I had my own kid.” As she spoke, Lena felt her heart swell, it had been months since Annie had called her ‘mama’, but it didn’t mean that she would ever stop getting butterflies. “I hate reading cases every day about children that could have been our baby, it keeps me awake at night! And with all of that, I still have to find the time to be a mom, and a girlfriend, and Supergirl. There aren’t enough hours in the day, and I’m not ready to give up any of my other three jobs any time soon.”

“Oh, Kara, come here.” She pulled her into her arms, reflecting on the exhaustion that she had seen Kara face over the past few months.

_Lena woke up at five-thirty in the morning so that she could travel to a conference. The bed was cold next to her and she felt around for her girlfriend before coming across a note that she had left on the pillow._

_‘Morning baby!_   
_I’ve gone to sleep in the living room, Supergirl emergency, then I couldn’t sleep and I didn’t want to keep you up. I wish we were cuddling though! Please don’t wake me when you get up (I only got in at three!)._   
_I’ll be up to make Annie breakfast, don’t worry about our little bean!_   
_Love you, Lee!!!!_   
_P.S. Have a ton of fun at your nerd conference! You’ll be the hottest and smartest nerd there.’_

“You must be absolutely exhausted! Please quit your job. Annie needs her super mom to be happy and healthy, and you need to be feeling good!” She kissed the top of her head and held her tightly in her arms, loving how she melted at the touch.

“Are you sure it’s okay?”

“Absolutely! The perk of being a billionaire is that I get to make sure my girlfriend and daughter get to live without stress! I want you to be happy, babe.”

“I don’t know what I’d do without you…” She leaned up and pressed her lips to Lena’s. They were cold, something she still couldn’t get used to. Humans, and their lips, got cold in winter. It was a strange sensation, but it was one that she welcomed more and more every time, appreciating how lucky she was to be able to call the Irish woman her girlfriend.

“You wouldn’t be in an office at night if it wasn’t for me!” She chuckled, reaching to pull out Kara’s ponytail that she neatly kept her hair tucked into every day. She ran her hair through the long curls and massaged her scalp, helping Kara relax into her body.

“You’re going to make me fall asleep.”

“You’re allowed to rest sometimes.” She laughed softly, tugging off her heels and loosening the belt of her pants so that they could relax together on the couch. Jess was used to seeing the two of them like this in the office and it made her assistant rather happy. Lena was always stressed when she was at work, and Jess realised that having Kara around was the one thing that managed to keep Lena sane - in turn, keeping the rest of the office sane.

“Not tonight, tonight I’m taking you out!” Kara wiggled her way off the couch, and handed her girlfriend the bag that she was carrying. She opened it to reveal one of Kara’s hoodies and a pair of sweats, as well as a pair of sneakers.

“You’re taking me out? And you want me to wear this?” She frowned down at her clothes. She could have worn literally anything else on a date, but her girlfriend chose sweats and a hoodie for her?

“Just trust me, you’ll look absolutely beautiful!”

She slipped on her clothes and giggled at the sight of herself. Where could they possibly be going that it was appropriate to dress like this? She didn’t care though, not really, all she cared about was the fact that her beautiful girlfriend was here to take her out and they were finally going to be spending time with just one another, nobody else would be involved.

After nearly too much convincing, Kara finally picked up Lena and flew out of the office. It was her first time travelling like this and she could feel the utter fear from the woman in her arms. She was shaking and her arms were wrapped impossibly tightly around her neck, clinging on for dear life as they coursed through the air. Here heart rate was faster than Kara had ever heard it to be, but she was still the most grateful woman to know that she was the person that Lena would trust to carry her like this.

They landed next to a lake as the sun began to set. The late November air was biting at Lena’s nose, turning that, and the tips of her ears, the most adorable shade of pink. It took her a minute to adjust to once again being able to stand, but when she would finally navigate her surroundings again, she practically jumped back to the blonde just so that she could kiss her. This was the most loving thing anyone had ever done for her. There was a picnic blanket on the floor, topped with bottles of red wine and an array of different foods that Kara knew that she loved. Her favourite blanket was being wrapped around her shoulders in an attempt to combat the cold as they made their way over to what Kara had organised for them.

“I remember when we first started dating, you told me of all of the things that you’re scared to do. You said that you always wanted to be in nature at night, but you didn’t want someone to hurt you, and since I’m kind of the strongest person on this planet, I figured, you could do what you’ve always wanted to do, and I can protect you if anything goes wrong.” Kara rambled adorably, her left hand moving up her face to move her glasses onto her nose as they slid down.

“You remembered that I told you that?” Lena asked, her hand reaching across the blanket to her girlfriend. Kara was pouring her a glass of wine, so she settled her hand on her knee and nuzzled into her side.

“Of course I do! I want to take you and Annie to do everything that you want to do, especially since nobody can stop me.” She winked and Lena couldn’t help but laugh at her adorable enthusiasm. The two of them started eating their food - as always Kara’s portion was more than twice the size of her girlfriend’s.

They talked together all evening, cherishing every minute of alone time that they got with one another. There was no doubt that Annie was what made Lena’s world turn, but having a moment with her girlfriend without a three year old interrupting was something that Lena never wanted to replace. Her body found comfort tucked up against Kara who had an arm wrapped around her shoulders. Her hand was tracing patterns up and down her girlfriend’s ivory arm, periodically rubbing away any signs of cold and warming her up with gentle kisses.

“I can’t believe I’ve known you for a year already.” Lena mumbled, happy and content as she sipped on her second glass of wine. She was so warm and comfortable against Kara, loving how she fit into her arms like the final piece of the puzzle.

“You know, I actually didn’t want to talk to you when I first saw you…” Lena admitted, giggling as she heard her own words spoken into reality. “You were too beautiful, and I was so scared to let someone into my life, I was just desperate to avoid conversation with anyone that wasn’t Annie or Sam.”

“Wait, really? So I was too enthusiastic for you?” Kara chuckled.

“Absolutely! That’s why it took me so long to admit I like you! I was wildly in love with you from the first day I saw you, I just desperately didn’t want to admit it… but I’m so glad that I did.”

“I’m more than glad, baby. Come here.” She wrapped her arms around the smaller woman, holding her into her chest and tilting her chin upwards. She pressed their lips together, one of her hands moving from her waist to the side of her head as she guided Lena against her. “I am so damn in love with you.”

“I’m very in love with you too, Kara.” She settled against her body once again as they laid down on the blanket. Lena laid on her side, her left leg tangling itself between Kara’s and her head using her chest as a pillow. They looked up at the stars together, Lena letting her hand search to hold Kara’s, instead settling when she found a strand of her hair to play with. She braided it absentmindedly when Kara started to speak again.

“I wish I could still see Krypton.” She sighed, pulling her love closer. It was a comfort for her to have Lena around when her mind wandered to things such as her past life on another planet. “When it… Rao, I hate the way it sounds, but when my planet exploded, I guess you could see it for a while. It’s kind of the same thing that happens with stars, you know how most of them don’t actually exist anymore? Well it’s been over thirty years since it was destroyed, and it was so far away, you can’t see it. My whole other life is gone, Lee.”

“I thought it was in another solar system?” She asked, her scientific interest getting the better of her.

“It was, I don’t even want to try and understand how it works, but I miss it. I guess I’m just lucky that I found a home in you, maybe it disappeared because I finally found the place that I fit in… I think it was probably the work of Rao.” She smiled a bit at the thought, enveloping Lena so tightly in her arms that she could safely say, she had never been so comfortable before in her life.

“I like that theory a lot. You found yourself a home, and I found myself a family.” She pressed a soft kiss to her neck and ran a finger over the spot that her lips touched as if to cherish the moment.

“I can’t believe I have a daughter now.” Kara blushed at the thought. “I know she’s too young right now, but I can’t wait to tell her stories of Krypton when she’s old enough. She’s a smart girl!”

“She’s our smart girl! I bet you can’t wait for next month, she’s so smart that she can’t sleep for the entire month of December in anticipation for Christmas!” Lena laughed, remembering how her baby woke up every morning of last December at four o’clock.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about that…” Kara resettled them, once again nervous for her conversation with Lena.

“Go ahead.” She nodded, not having any idea what she might bring up this time.

“Do you want to come to Midvale for Christmas? Eliza really wants to meet you, and I thought it would be really nice for us to spend the day with her… Alex, Kelly and Scarlie will be there too.”

“You’d want that?”

“Of course I would! She’s desperate to meet her newest grandbaby!” Kara beamed as Lena nodded her appreciation of the offer, sealing the deal with a kiss to her lips.

“In that case, the two of us would be absolutely honoured to spend the holidays with you!” She kissed her - hard. It was her first christmas since she was four that she would be spending with a real family, and she hated to admit it but, she was more than a little excited.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi y'all, I have a few more chapters of fluff before be get back to the painful storyline... But they end up happy! I promise.  
> I think by October I should be updating more... but no promises right now!  
> I hope you enjoyed, and I'm more than happy to take suggestions for anything you'd like to see! 
> 
> Kudos & comments are greatly appreciated (as usual)  
> Thank you for reading!!
> 
> Lu xox


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't had time to proof it... Sorry!!  
> hope you enjoy

Lena sat on the floor of her apartment with her daughter in her lap and her girlfriend’s reassuring arm wrapped around her shoulder. She had got back from LCorp just over an hour ago and had taken the next two weeks away from the office so that she could celebrate Christmas in the way that a normal family would.

There was quiet music playing throughout their house whilst the smell of sugar cookies wafted through the open doors, mixing with the smell of fresh pine from their Christmas tree. Kara was insistent that they baked cookies before their guests came over, so Lena busied herself vacuuming the living room whilst their daughter helped to roll out the dough. The shapes of each treat were obscure from trusting a three year old with a cookie cutter - but it was more than worth it to see the pure joy on their faces as they developed new christmas traditions together. 

It had been a stressful month of social workers and written agreements so that Lena could ensure that she would have Annie in her custody over the Christmas period, allowing them to go all the way to Midvale for the actual festivities. It was their last night that they would be spending in National City before they left to visit Kara’s family, and so they had invited all of their friends over to enjoy one last game night and exchange gifts. 

Sam and Ruby coming over for the first time as all of Kara’s friends, and Lena was beyond excited to finally have all aspects of her life mix together. Alex was the first to arrive (as always) with Scarlett perched on her hip, holding a half eaten candy cane in her mouth as it dripped and stained both of their ugly Christmas jumpers. They were told that Kelly was on her way, having to stop at the store on their way home so that she could collect the snacks for their party. 

Sam and Ruby were the next ones to show up, the now five-year-old bouncing more than excitedly on her toes as she caught a glimpse of the pile of presents that stood proudly under the towering tree. All of the gifts were wrapped neatly, all adorned with bows and ribbons in an attempt from the billionaire to keep her house looking pristine, even throughout the holiday period. 

Kelly showed up merely minutes after Winn had, announcing her entrance to two very excited children who were more than happy to see their aunt or mother. Winn was greeted with a similar warmth, especially from Annie who had grown to love the man after she had started spending time with him at the DEO when her mama had gone out to help the city as a superhero. 

As much as she loved Winn, nobody could ever get close to how much she adored J’onn, her eyes lighting up like emeralds as she saw her favourite man let himself into their house. She ran up to him instantly, hugging onto his leg - something Kara had to explain to Lena the first time that she had seen it happen. It was a mystery to them why she had grown to love J’onn so much, but neither of them would question her happiness, grateful for her to have a positive male role model around at a minute’s notice. 

“Pumpkin! How are my sweetest girls doing?” He made his way over to Scarlett, who loved him almost as much. 

“Papa J’onn!” They both giggled excitedly, leaving their parents’ in favour of spending time with him. 

“I love how much she loves our family.” Kara spoke, her arms squeezing around her girlfriend in a fierce hug. Lena’s heart melted at the thought. Christmas was something she usually dreaded, but this year, she finally had a family to spend it with. She could show Annie all of the love and happiness that she was deprived of when she was a child herself. 

“I like how that sounds.” Lena’s words were unusually delicate as her brain lagged so that she could make sense of the fact that this was her life now. The fire was warm, the music was loud, being drowned out by cheers, singing and laughter. Kara’s laughter was something that she knew she could never grow tired of, always hearty and full of joy, it was enough to make anyone laugh along with her. In particular, her three year old daughter who couldn’t help giggling when she heard her mama’s hearty belly laugh. 

It was a laugh that they were all blessed enough to hear when the door swung wide open to reveal a very festively dressed Nia and a toned down Brainy. Nia was wearing possibly the most shocking Christmas jumper of all of them, having both lights and music blaring from it which attracted the attention of the three children who were otherwise oblivious to her entrance.

“Aunt Nia is here! And I have gifts!” She knelt to the floor, bringing Scarlett and Annie into a hug. Ruby stood off to the side, suddenly nervous around the huge group of family and friends that she was barely familiar with. She made her way over to Lena and plopped herself down in her lap, not really finding comfort from her own mother who appeared to be just as nervous as she was. 

They all got tearing into their presents, Kara going between both her daughter and her niece so that she could enjoy their happiness with them, whilst Lena and Sam spent their time looking between the two of their daughters who were proudly holding up their new best friend necklaces to show to everyone in the room, seemingly helping Ruby gain her confidence as they all ran into her playroom, leaving all of the adults around the coffee table which Winn had taken the liberty to use so that he could set up their game of monopoly. 

Lena rolled up her sleeves as soon as she saw the game board, looking Sam dead in the eye and whispering loudly that there was no way in the world that she would be beaten. There was no way they were getting through this without an argument, being the CEO and CFO of major companies in the city. 

“It’s on, Luthor!” Sam glared playfully, cheersing her glass of red, never breaking her menacing stare. 

“I wouldn’t challenge her! None of us have ever won against her even when she’s drunk!” Winn sulked, secretly excited to see Lena face some real competition. 

“I’m having Kar on my team!” Lena announced as the rest of the guests claimed their partners. Alex chose Kelly, Nia chose Brainy, Winn and J’onn played together, leaving Sam to play alone.

“I’m more than happy to play alone! At least we’ll know it’s a fair win!” Sam laughed and Lena rolled her eyes at her as she spoke.

“You’re just jealous that you don’t have Kara.” She giggled, a trait that she barely let anyone see, and pressed herself into Kara’s lips. SHe relished in how they tasted just like the cinnamon coffees that her girlfriend had been drinking religiously since the start of the season, always using the excuse that they weren’t a thing on Krypton so she had to make up for lost time. 

The game progressed throughout the evening, Alex and Kelly losing almost immediately, but not really minding. Instead they excused themselves and came back a few minutes later with the three children who were more than excited to take the cookies out of the oven with their mom or aunts. 

“Luthor! It’s a game, sweetie!” Nia burst out laughing as she watched the best friends stare intently at the board before Lena finally came to the conclusion of how she could win. She was more than sure that Sam had come to a similar conclusion and was ganging up on her with her girlfriend in order to distract her from executing her perfect plan. Kara was nibbling at her earlobe and kissing at her neck in order to have someone else win the game for once, understanding that Sam was her best shot for this to finally happen.

“She’s a really sore loser, Nia. She would kill someone if they were distracting her from winning.” Kara spoke, her words hot against the shell of Lena’s ear. Lena was having none of it though as she put her stack of faux money on the table.

“Hotels, please.” She winked in Sam’s direction before she kissed Kara deeply, almost as if to prove that she could have it all. And in a strange sense, that’s really how it felt. She had her daughter and her job, she had her girlfriend and her best friend, and her new--found family. For once in her life, she could really say that she had it all.

“So, I’ve lost…” Sam produced her minimal money left, hoping that being cocky about her game would ensure her win. That was far from the truth. Winn cried out angrily when he realised that he was, as always, the one who had to pour the next lot of drinks. It was the same deal he always made (and lost) every time that they played, that somebody would be able to beat Lena. 

She might have found it funny, but she wasn’t one to care about winning, especially not when her daughter wandered back over to them and nuzzled herself into her mommy’s chest, reaching one hand out to Kara to make sure that she could hold both of her parents with her at the same time. 

“Are you sleepy, bug?” Lena asked and she shook her head frantically, desperate to stay awake and enjoy the fun with the adults who didn’t seem to look tired in the slightest.

“Nuh-uh.” 

“Yeah, you look super awake, Annie. I’ll tell you what, you can snuggle with me and we can stay up past bedtime tonight because it’s a special family night, okay?” She negotiated, knowing that she would be out like a light as soon as she started to trace patterns on her back. It always soothed her, no matter what happened. 

“Yes mommy!” She beamed happily, pressing her head into her mother’s chest and letting out a huge, squeaky yawn. She had sipped on Lena’s hot chocolate, her mom insisting that they shared since she was incredibly aware of the fact that Annie wouldn’t stay awake anywhere near long enough to finish a whole mug. 

Kara disappeared into the kitchen after a while, Alex meeting her in there, confused to be met with nervous pacing. Alex opened her arms, always being a safe haven for her younger sister, and she wasn’t surprised when she fell against her body and let out a weak, nervous whimper, only serving to make Alex laugh. 

“What on earth is going on with you?” She asked gently, tugging her sister close and carding her fingers through her hair in the protective way that only a sister could. 

“What if Eliza doesn’t like Lena… because I’m really in love with her and I don’t want to lose her and I want Annie to love her. They’re such a huge part of my life but I’ve lost my entire family Alex! You and Eliza were all I had! And now I have Lena and Annie and I don’t even want to begin to imagine how I would feel if Eliza didn’t like them. They’re the most perfect people in the world, but I can’t lose another mom.” She rambled, only barely making sense. Alex had seen these kinds of meltdowns now and then, and she knew it was okay to feel that kind of darkness, she knew Kara had seen unimaginable things, but there was no way that she would lose a family ever again. 

“Sweetie, oh don’t cry.” She cuddled her close, kissing the top of her head. “You have a fantastic taste in girls! Mom has been begging me to get you to bring her over, she will love her. And even if she doesn’t, you know that she would never stop loving you! You’re blatantly the favourite kid anyway!” 

“That’s not true! You’re her actual kid, she just adopted me.” She mumbled self-consciously, backing up a little bit from her sister’s embrace. She loved Alex, she really did, but sometimes the holidays were daunting. Earth traditions were never learnt on her home planet, and it was always difficult for her to understand this foreign version of a god (why did everybody not worship Rao?) and it was difficult for her to spend such a ‘monumental’ holiday with people who weren’t the family who raised her.

“You’re my sister! Mom might not be your birth mom, but she’s here for you, just like you are for Annie. You don’t love her any less just because you aren’t related to her. Same goes for me and Kells with Scarlie! You’re family, Kara, our love for you is unconditional, no matter how dumb you can be sometimes.” 

“I know. I know we’re a family, I don’t want to be ungrateful, I just miss my real mom.” She whispered, her emotions gripping her so tightly that she barely heard the footsteps entering the kitchen with them. 

“Alex, Kelly is begging to leave before Scar wakes up, you might want to go out there.” Lena smiled, taking Kara’s hand and squeezing it to let her know that they could speak if Kara wanted them to. 

“Well then, I’ve got to get going!” Alex pressed a kiss to her sister’s head and hugged her close, murmuring something along the lines of always being there for her before she left and drove home, hand in hand with her wife. 

The women were left in the kitchen with no distractions to take away from the tears rolling down Kara’s cheeks. She made no effort to speak, so Lena made sure not to press her for information. Instead she weaved her way around the kitchen, producing two mugs of that damn cinnamon coffee for them to drink over a christmas movie. They managed to get halfway through before Kara spoke out in a whisper.

“I miss my mom.” She sighed, closing her eyes as if doing so would enclose the pain as well. “Christmas is so different to Kryptonian traditions… this whole new life just makes me more aware of everything that I’ve lost.” 

“Babe, come here, let me hold you tonight.” She moved so her back was against the couch, holding Kara silently, waiting for her to speak first, desperate to not pressure her into talking. 

They stayed cuddled for a while longer before she spoke again, this time leading her girlfriend out to the balcony. She knelt down wordlessly, bringing Lena with her, before she spoke in a string of Kryptonian that the scientist could only try to decipher - never having much luck despite her valiant efforts. 

“Sweetie, who are we talking to.” She curled into her girlfriend, seeking her warmth in the bitter December air. 

“Rao, I wanted to tell him how my life had changed. I want to know that what I’m doing is okay. I’m always reassured that you’re a good part of my life… but I just miss my planet. It’s nice to hear reassurance sometimes.” She sighed, and just as it looked as though nothing would happen, there was an intense flash of light across the sky, an orange shooting star. 

“Kar! Look!” Lena pointed to the smear of light and was met with a huge grin.

“Baby! That’s him! I needed this tonight, I always feel so guilty when I see Eliza, but somehow talking to Rao is always so reassuring.”

“As a scientist, I was skeptical… but.... Wow.” Lena was speechless, but so happy for Kara. 

“Earth isn’t as developed as Krypton was… trust me, Rao is very much real!” She stood and picked Lena up, snuggling her against her warm body as the slightly younger woman chuckled. 

“Thank you for being my family on earth.” 

“Thank you for being my family beyond the Luthors.” Lena smiled feebly in return, giving Kara a kiss as she was placed into bed, only to be joined by her just a second after. She breathed deeply as she was pulled against her girlfriend’s body, loving the warmth that radiated from Kara. She tucked her head under her chin and peppered kisses across her chest, trailing her lips from her face to her neck and back again.

“Stay right here!” She jumped up from where she was sitting, using her super speed to race to the kitchen and back, returning with a plate of cookies and two glasses of almond milk. Lena couldn’t help but smile as she plucked one of the treats off of the plate and dipped it in her milk. 

“Can we stay up a while longer? I want to talk about christmas.” Kara asked her, her words had been waiting to be spoken for a while now.

“Of course, darling, what do you want to talk about?” She tucked herself back between Kara’s legs, laying herself against her chest and reaching for one of her hands. She played absentmindedly with her fingers as they descended into conversation. 

“What was christmas like for you as a kid? I never had a real christmas morning, and I don’t really know what to do around Annie…” She admitted nervously. It wasn’t something that Kara generally spoke of in a negative way, but the more time they spent together, the more that Lena realised how much the destruction of her planet had really affected her. She did well most of the time to hide it behind her huge puppy dog eyes (which Annie had been taught to use) and her award winning smile. 

“As a kid? I don’t remember christmas with my real mum.” She shrugged off the painful memories, that weren’t really memories. She wanted to call them as such, but she couldn’t really class them as memories when the fact was, she remembered nothing. 

“What about when you were adopted?” She wanted to know everything about Lena, and she wanted to be on the same page as her when it came to raising their daughter. 

“Sam bought me the first christmas present I ever remember opening.” She laughed. It wasn’t happy, nor was it bitter, it was a laugh to stop her from crying. “Nobody loved me when I was a kid, and it hurt more than usual around christmas time. Lex would get all of these expensive gifts and I would get a dress every year. Mother always made it an inch too tight so that I would look particularly skinny for her christmas parties, she would use me as a bargaining chip to set me up with the sons of her business partners… needless to say, I haven't been to one of those parties since I got pregnant and came out. I don’t want Annie to ever do anything like that.” 

“Christmas for me was always about pleasing my family, I never really understood it… but now we have Annie around, I understand the want and the need to please the people you love over the holidays. I want her to be happier than we were.” Kara nodded as she spoke and Lena felt as though she had struck gold with the woman she was so lucky to call her girlfriend. 

“I get to give her a family this year, she’s never had this before, and she really loves everyone.” 

“They all love her too! And they love you, Lee… even if Winn can’t shut up about you when we play monopoly… sometimes I think he has a crush!” She laughed and Lena swatted her chest at the mere mention of Winn flirting with her.

“I don’t see much in other people anymore… there’s only one girl I have eyes for.” 

“She must be very lucky…” 

“I think about her a lot, y’know? She’s really cool… and funny, and caring and I think I might be in love with her.” 

“Tell me more.” Kara whispered, pressing a firm kiss to Lena’s neck.

“She changed my life, she loved me harder than I thought anyone ever could and she’s an actual genius! Kara, you’re a genius, baby.” She pressed her lips against Kara’s fervently.

“I love you, Lena, now no more talking.” She mumbled, her words almost going unheard between the lips of the two women as Kara flipped them both over so she could be on top. They surely weren’t going to get much sleep that night, but, in that moment, it didn’t matter. Neither woman had ever felt more in love before in their whole lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I'm moving out in a week, so it's currently very hectic trying to get my entire life together so I can move 4 hours away from my family!!!  
> I hope you enjoyed the update, and hopefully when I've moved, they'll improve... but we shall see  
> Sorry for any mistakes, and I hope you enjoyed the read!
> 
> Comments & Kudos are always welcome
> 
> Lu xox


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> didn't have time to proof read, as always, I'm crazy busy.
> 
> longer chapter to make up for the minimal updates recently.  
> hope you enjoy!!

When Kara woke up the next morning to the sound of her six-thirty alarm, she was more than shocked to feel the cold expanse of bed next to her. The sheets were empty and her girlfriend was nowhere to be found. That was, at least, until she woke up some more, her ears finally adjusting enough for her super hearing to kick in. As much as she was grateful for her powers, the last thing she wanted to hear that morning was her wife whining in the bathroom by herself. She tugged on her robe and knocked on the bathroom door before letting it swing open. Lena was curled up, her hair matted slightly, and her pale skin tinged green as she was doubled over, shielding her stomach. 

“What’s wrong, Lee?” She scooped her up and brought her back to bed. Maybe the anxiety was getting the better of her and she had decided that she didn’t want to go up to Midvale after all. Not that Kara could blame her, really, meeting the family is a huge step to take in a relationship.

“I got my period, my stomach hurts like hell and I think I stained the sheets.” She spoke apologetically through gritted teeth. 

“I’ve never had a period-” Kara started to speak but was cut off immediately by her whimpering girlfriend.

“If you use this to boast about your perfect body, I will cry. You have no idea how hormonal I am right now.” She chuckled bitterly as she was laid down on Kara’s side of the bed. 

I wouldn’t dream of it.” Kara giggled, dropping a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll get you a heating pad and some painkillers and you can sleep a little longer, I’ll get Annie ready and pack the car.” 

“Could you bring me a blanket for the car ride? I’m being torn apart!” She whimpered dramatically, causing her girlfriend to laugh with her before she immediately agreed to get her everything that she needed for the journey. 

“Hey, darling?” Lena grabbed her wrist as she went to leave the room. Kara turned round, her wide eyes filled with expectancy as she waited for what she had to say.

“I love you a lot.”

“And I love you too, baby.” She pressed a kiss to the clammy forehead, blowing some cool air over her before bringing back what she needed to be comfortable. 

The rest of the morning was down to Kara to prepare them all for the five hour drive to Midvale. She made a pot of coffee and poured a travel mug out for her girlfriend, setting it on the counter to cool down. Annie came bounding down the stairs soon after holding her arms out to her mama to say good morning.

“Did you sleep well, sweet pea?” She set her on the counter after cuddling her and toasted a slice of bread which she coated with a healthy serving of avocado. It was a huge surprise for Kara to find out that the toddler enjoyed certain foods - the most shocking to date was a tie between salads and avocado toast. 

“Yep!” She chirped, one hand gripping her hippo whilst the other picked up her toast. “Mommy buyed me ‘vocado’s for my toast.” She nodded gratefully, taking a huge bite of the food that made Kara’s skin crawl. 

“Mommy also said we have to have some fruit with our breakfast too… what do you choose today, kiddo?” She held out the selection as Annie bit her lip, contemplating which food would go best with her toast. She seemed overexcited by the choices and pointed enthusiastically to the bowl of mango, leaving Lena with a bowl of grapes and a slice of toast for her breakfast. 

They ate quickly, using her hands to pick up the fruit after she had asked for Kara’s permission to do so. Annie had chosen black leggings and a red reindeer jumper to wear for the car journey so Kara dressed her quickly before giving her the order to go and wake up her mommy. 

Whilst she was temporarily child free, Kara took the chance to use her superspeed and pack up the car. She got bottles of water for all of them and put her girlfriend’s breakfast in tupperware so that she could eat it whilst they were driving. The ipad was secured to the back of the headrest for entertainment purposes, and there was a blanket piled into the passenger seat. Lena approached the car just a minute later, her pyjamas replaced with Kara’s clothes that she had miserably stolen in her rush to get ready. She had Annie balanced on her hip who was excitedly telling Lena all about the movies she was planning to watch whilst they drove.

“Sounds interesting, bug! Let’s get you strapped in and ready to go.” She perched her in the car seat and secured the belts around her before she was finally comfortable with her safety. She almost doubled over on the way to her own seat in the car, cursing under her breath as she curled into a ball and tugged the blanket and heating pad over herself.

“I love you.” Kara whispered as she watched Lena close her eyes in the passenger seat. She hated feeling so helpless in this situation, but she knew that she was doing everything that she could to make sure that she was comfortable for the long drive.

“You’re the best.” Lena replied before she let herself fall asleep again. 

Kara took the liberty of setting up a stream of christmas movies to play on the ipad so that her daughter wouldn’t get bored, and she turned on the radio for herself. Most of the drive was spent quietly, Lena never waking from her slumber, even when they stopped to pick up lunch for a service station. 

“Baby! C’mon, we’re going to get a starbucks! How does some juice and mac and cheese sound?” She opened up the back door of the car and unstrapped Annie from her seat. The little girl was quick to spring into action, jumping out of the car and holding a tiny hand up for her mama to take so that they could go inside.

“Can I get a snack too?” She beamed up at Kara, her green eyes wide like that of a puppy dog. She really regretted teaching her that skill. 

“Maybe we could get you some dried mango? Or apricots?”

Annie nodded happily at the suggestion: parenting success!

They made their way into the coffee shop, the blonde clearing the shelves of sandwiches, picking up a salad for her girlfriend and a mac and cheese for her daughter who was now sat chirpily against her hip. She was fascinated with the microwave that they had put her food in, asking Kara all sorts of questions about the magic box that made her food hot. She made sure to answer them all in the most truthful, and least scientific way as she ordered coffees for both herself and her girlfriend. Annie excitedly chose a packet of dried cranberries to snack on in the car and Kara picked a bar of chocolate for Lena - she had learnt from Alex that girls always enjoy chocolate on their periods. 

“We need to blow on it in case it’s too hot! Careful, sweetie.” Kara used her freeze breath to cool down the meal just enough so that Annie could enjoy it herself. She sat in the back seat whilst she ate, not wanting to miss if she burned herself or choked… she was fiercely overprotective of her. They were engrossed in their meals, so much so that she didn’t even notice Lena was awake until she heard her clear her throat when Annie had finished her meal.

“I’m super full, mommy! Mama let me get berries for the car.” She held the bag of cranberries up proudly, offering one to her mother who accepted it politely as Kara climbed back into the driver’s seat after her fifth sandwich. She took notice of Lena who looked slightly perkier than before, her skin brighter and her eyes filled with more life. Her hair was a straggled mess atop her head, though, something that Kara resolved by running her fingers through it. She used this as an excuse to pull Lena closer for a kiss before they started the drive again.

Annie was tucked up in the back seat, her headphones on her head and her eyes glued to the screen secured to the back of her mommy’s seat. Lena was digging into her sandwich, thanking Kara profusely for the chocolate bar that she had seemingly managed to pull from thin air. She turned up the radio that Kara was nodding her head to and took her hand over the centre console, tugging it into her lap and holding it whilst her girlfriend drove. 

“Babe…” Lena looked at her girlfriend with the same puppy eyes that Annie had given her earlier. Roa! She was a sucker for the Luthor girls.

“Hmm? What’s up?” 

“Want to use your super sneaky powers and reheat this pad?” She held it up to where Kara was able to quickly use her heat vision on it. She left the wheel in Lena’s hand’s to steer whilst she couldn’t look at what was going on around her. It was a dangerous move, but it was one that she was glad that she had made when she watched the brunette curl back under her blanket, a sigh of relief as she settled the warm pad against her stomach, and a chocolate bar half way to her mouth.

They all settled again after that, going back to their previous states. Lena stayed awake for the remaining two hours, her cramps having subsided, making way for the anxiety to blossom as she thought about meeting her girlfriend’s mother. She tapped against the window but was quiet other than that, biting her lip as they drove up the seafront. She’d seen a picture of the family home from what Kara had shown her, and she knew that they were fast approaching.

Her mind was still racing but slightly slower when she saw Alex’s car in the driveway already. That meant there were already three other people in the way who already knew her. It was the confidence boost that she had needed to get out of the car. She knew Alex was a big fan of hers already, and was grateful for the fact that Kelly had already been so understanding of the fact that this was her first time spending a holiday with the Danvers’.

“Kiddo, you’ve gotta be on your best behaviour… okay? No taking things that don’t belong to you, and no screaming.” She took off Annie’s headphones and lowered to her level to have a talk with the toddler. She felt guilty doing this. The tree year old was already so well behaved, but she didn’t want to risk looking like a bad mother or girlfriend. She had never made a good impression on families. Even as a four year old, she seemed to mess up… so maybe she was projecting that, just a little bit, onto Annie.

“She’s gonna be a superstar! Don’t worry, Grandma is so chill, kiddo, she’s even told me she’s got you a present! Isn’t that so cool?” Kara let her down and turned to her girlfriend. “She’s going to love you both, you have that effect on people.” She kissed just below her ear and watched as the nervous smile spread across her face.

She had made Kara pull over just before she got there, telling her that there was no way that she was going to meet her mother in a pair of pyjamas and a blanket. Instead, she had changed into her favourite armani blouse and some black jeans - a casual outfit for the billionaire. 

Kara didn’t knock on the door, that was the first thing that the Luthor had noticed. If this was her going back to the Luthor mansion, there was no way that she would have had the confidence to just open the front door. Having a close family was boggling Lena’s brain. Every interaction from then on just seemed to get stranger by the minute. But she had never felt more at home. 

“Eliza! We’re here!” Kara called out and Annie moved to cling to her mama’s leg, confused of the new environment. The little girl who was once so sociable, was now scared of almost every situation that involved new people. Her toddler brain was focused on one thing, though: her present. 

“Kara! You’re glowing.” Eliza pulled her into a tight hug before she turned her attention to the other two girls who had come into her house. Lena immediately felt her cheeks burn and cursed her porcelain complexion. Her palms grew sweaty and her heart was beating furiously against her ribs as she took in the older woman. Surprisingly, she looked more like Kara than she did Alex. Her cheeks were softly wrinkled, with prominent smile lines around her mouth and eyes and her hair was blonde, falling just below her shoulders. 

“You must be Lena? It’s so lovely to finally meet you.” She reached out to hug her. A hug. It was the most affection she had received from a maternal figure since she was four years old, and it took every part of her being to stop her from crying on the spot. She didn’t have long to think about it before Eliza had dropped to her knees, her arms outstretched to the toddler who was standing in front of her. 

“Hi.” Annie piped, her arm still wrapped tightly around Kara’s leg, looking up for approval concerning the towering blonde lady. She wasn’t particularly tall but when you’re three, giants aren’t hard to come by.

“Annie! You’re mama was right, you’re such a pretty girl! She told me how much you love pizza, so I baked you some earlier!” She smiled warmly and cuddled Annie in her arms who had immediately softened at the mention of her favourite dinner. 

“Lee? Is that you?” She heard Alex call from the kitchen, and Eliza led them all through to see the rest of the family. Alex was in her pyjamas, and it turned out that they were actually ones that matched with her wife and daughter, as she served the pizza across the seven plates. Every one of them was vegan. The family were caring for her in a way that she had never been cared for.

“Hi Alex.” She tried to smile but her hands were still trembling and her mind was still racing. Families like this were fictional, nobody really liked each other in the real world. Siblings killed and parents abused, they didn’t all sit around a table for a home-baked pizza.

“We love you, Luthor, stop worrying.” She punched her arm gently. True to form, Alex didn’t outwardly show affection to people who weren’t her wife, sister or daughter. 

“Easier said than done.” She shrugged weakly as she sat at the table. The meal was full of small talk, and the thought of any subject being on the cards made Lena more nervous than ever. 

“I saw my daddy and he gived me my christmas present and he gived me a teddy.” Annie proudly told them all as their conversation moved onto the topic of christmas.

“Did he? Is this the teddy?” Eliza gestured to the grubby looking hippo that hadn’t left Annie’s lap through the course of dinner. 

“No. Mommy buyed hippy.” She told her and Lena smiled, proud in some petty way that the toy she had bought all of those years ago was more important than the shiny, new bear from her father. 

“Your mommy sounds so nice! I hope you said thank you.” Kelly laughed, happily indulging in the conversation with Annie so that Eliza could have a moment to talk to the new couple in front of her. 

“Dinner was lovely, Mrs Danvers, thank you for cooking it for my daughter and I.” She spoke with a nod, her brain going a million miles an hour. How do you impress adults? Do you speak now that you are an adult yourself, or do you wait until you are spoken to? Speaking a thank you surely could not be perceived as rude, could it? 

“Don’t be silly! Call me Eliza.” She smiled warmly but Lena couldn’t shake the feeling that she had spoken out of place. Having dinner with a family was one thing, having dinner with a parent was a whole other thing entirely. She didn’t fit in this house. Her family weren’t like this.

“I didn’t mean to offend you, Mrs- Sorry, Eliza.” Lena wanted to melt. That’s what she wanted to do. If she could close her eyes in that moment and disappear to another plain of existence - that is surely what she would do. 

“Nonsense! You don’t have to be nervous, anyone that my kids love, I can’t help loving too!” She tried to reassure Lena but her hands just kept getting clammier and her heartbeat faster and faster. Eliza wasn’t a danger, she knew that wholeheartedly, but there was a fear that she felt around families, almost as if she didn’t believe she deserved to be loved as a daughter. 

“Lena has been crushing it at work recently, Eliza, she’s been researching some kind of thing with stem cells?” Kara tried to help but just fumbled over her words, not really understanding the science behind Lena’s genius. She would do anything to help her girlfriend from her anxiety, though, her heart could be heard rattling inside her chest every time a word was spoken. She wanted to reach out and wrap her in a hug, she had never seen her like this before, but she knew that would just make her feel weak, so it was up to her to try and help her subtly. 

“Stem cell manipulation with the incorporation of different kinds of drugs.” Lena’s brain clicked. He could be smart, she knew how to do that, even if the pressure was mounting as Kelly and Alex took the kids to the living room to play with the building blocks.

“I must say, what you’re doing is incredible! I’ve seen so many people try and fail in this field, but it seems as though you’re really making progress.” The two women smiled at one another, happily exchanging their medical stories as the brunette finally took a bite of her food, her throat now significantly less restricted than it was previously. 

The conversation continued for a few minutes longer before Kara excused herself to use the bathroom, leaving the women alone. Lena was desperate to make some kind of excuse to find her way out of the situation but Eliza pressed a calming hand on her knee, telling her that she was happy to stay and talk to her. 

“Annie talked about her father a lot, I must say that I am curious of the situation… every time Kara speaks of you two it sounds as though she lives at your house?” 

“She does… it’s potentially the longest story there is, but she spends friday nights with her father and he drops her back at my house before midday on saturday.” She shook her head bitterly, feeling tears prick behind her eyes.

You don’t cry in front of mother, so don’t cry in front of Mrs Danvers.

“You’re such a strong mother to be considering Annie’s feelings despite your own, Lena.” She gave Lena’s hand a gentle squeeze, carefully chipping away at the sky high walls she had created for herself. 

“Do you think it’s the right thing? I don’t want to pressure you for an answer, but you raised Kara and Alex so well, I just-” 

“Parenting is trial and error, but the one thing that you have more than anyone I’ve seen, is love for your little girl! I’m sure she could do everything besides kill someone and you’d still love her the same! Kara feels the same way about her too… that’s the only thing you can ever be sure that you have done right as a parent. Annie knows that she’s incredibly loved, and that is the best you can ever do for her.” 

“You’re so kind, Eliza,I’m thankful for this conversation.” Lena nodded, holding her hand out to shake her mother in-law’s. Two steps forward, one step back as she retreated back into her shell once Kara came back into the room. 

“You can always talk to me, sweetie, we’re family.” Eliza pushed her hand aside and tugged her into a hug, letting her know that she was always going to be there for her. Lena would never admit it, but she melted into the woman’s arms, relishing in the smell of flowers and freshly baked bread that radiated from her. 

Maybe, just maybe, she could be confident around Kara’s family. It was seeming like a genuine possibility as she fell asleep, wrapped in Kara’s arms that evening, in her childhood home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi y'all,  
> Thank you for all your kind wishes about me moving out! I'll let you know how it all goes on saturday!  
> You're all so lovely and I truly appreciate every Kudos and comment...  
> Although I can drive, I don't live in America so I don't actually know if you have service stations over there... it's creative liberty if there aren't service stations.
> 
> Anyways... I hope you all have a lovely week! I plan to update again on saturday (assuming the move goes well...)  
> thank you for reading,
> 
> Lu xox


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK!!  
> Hi again, my lovelies :)  
> As you all know from before, I moved out! More notes at the end of the chapter, but for now, I hope you enjoy.  
> (I barely got this written and didn't have time to edit - I have 6 assignments due in very soon)

“I kind of hate it here.” Lena admitted, her phone pressed against the side of her face as she complained to her best friend. “I can’t deal with this kind of pressure, especially when Annie is looking up to me to be confident.” 

Kara could see her laying there, one arm gripping across her stomach as the other clutched her phone. It was obvious from her voice that she was crying, and she was grateful to be the only one with super hearing so that Annie didn’t have to hear her mother. She so desperately wanted to go into the room and hug her girlfriend, but she knew she needed her space.

“I know, Sam. Seeing Lex has really messed with my head, and I really don’t know how a family could love me! Lex and Lillian always made sure nobody did.” Lena sniffled down the line. The Kryptonian was standing outside of her door, angry with the fact that Lena couldn’t accept being loved. 

She walked downstairs and into the kitchen, cutting herself a slice of cake and stabbing at it with her fork. Her irritation had turned into hunger as she devoured the cake slice after slice, not noticing as Alex walked into the room and sat beside her. 

“What’s wrong, kid?” She asked, dropping onto the chair next to her. “Stress eating?” 

“I can’t make Lena happy, you know?” She took another enormous bite, barely even swallowing it before she started speaking again. “It’s christmas eve, and she doesn’t want to be here.” 

“You know that’s not your fault, right?” Alex sighed, handing her sister a mug of cocoa as she spoke. “She’s been through a lot to get where she is right now, I wouldn’t expect her to be okay for her first christmas! I remember on your first Christmas here, you cried all day!” 

“But my entire world had just exploded, Alex! Maybe I didn’t want to be happy all the time!” Kara snapped back, biting her tongue as she reached the realisation that was lingering in the back of her mind. “This is her first christmas with a family.” Kara spoke barely above a whisper. 

“Exactly.” The brunette smiled with a comforting hand on her younger sister’s shoulder. “I know you want her to be happy, but you have to let her deal with this at her own speed.” 

“Who are you two talking about?” Lena walked into the room. Her face was far from tear stained, and she had Annie tucked closely to her on her hip, bundled in blankets. 

“The weather!” 

“Krypton!”

“The weather on Krypton! Weren’t we, Alex!?” Kara fumbled over her words, silently begging Alex to agree with her and support what she was saying. Alex on the other hand, could not entertain her sisters’ stupidity much longer, and chose to change the subject entirely instead. 

“We were actually planning on making more cookies for santa, if you and Annie are interested? We could teach you our famous sugar cookie recipe?” She offered, smiling wide, Annie's eyes lit up in anticipation for Santa coming that evening. 

“Can we, Mommy? And Mama too?” She squealed excitedly, trying to reach her arms free of her blankets so that she could reach for the wooden spoon.

“Of course you can, bug! We have to make enough for santa though, you can’t eat all of them like you normally do.” Lena chuckled, tying the toddler’s hair into a bun so that it wouldn’t get caught up in the dough.

They combined all of the ingredients together, and whilst Lena was glad to have a distraction from her thoughts, she couldn’t help but notice Kara’s eyes flicker over to her every few seconds. She knew that Kara had heard her with her enhanced hearing, but she knew she couldn’t help listening to what she was saying. It’s not like her girlfriend could control the volume that she heard things at. 

Annie was having the time of her life with her aunt and cousin, excitedly pressing her little fingers into the dough until she got bored and finally let it go to be put into the oven. It was nearing family dinner time and Lena could feel her palms growing clammy as her heart pounded against her ribs. She had to be okay this time. She really wasn’t a teenager anymore, she was an adult now with a girlfriend and a daughter, which meant that she had to act like it. 

She let her teeth sink into her tongue as she watched Kara’s adoptive mother race around the kitchen, busy making the different types of mac and cheese for everyone’s tastes - something that Lena had learnt was somewhat of a tradition within the Danvers’ house. She bit her tongue even harder as she was left alone in the room with her (kind of) mother in-law, and begged herself to speak and offer her help. 

“I know you do this a lot, and I don’t want to patronise you by asking, but is there anything I can do to help?” Lena rocked on her feet, feeling much like a toddler herself. 

“Lena, honey, you can go and relax if you want to?” Eliza spoke sincerely, nodding to the door that lead her through to the living room. “But it’s almost ready if you wanted to serve it?” She offered both options to her daughter in-law, hoping that it might somehow make her feel more relaxed. 

“I think I’ll help you serve, if that’s okay?” She picked up four of the plates in the way that she had been taught how to do when she was made to serve dinner back at the Luthor mansion. Everybody had to have their plate at the same time when they were eating together. It was Lillian’s idea, some kind of plan to make them seem more like a normal family for their chef and maids who lived among them. 

“Were you a waitress growing up?” Eliza tried to make polite conversation. 

“I didn’t actually have a job until I got pregnant with Annie, I kind of relied on my family’s money. I learnt to carry plates so I could serve dinner to mother and father at home.” She offered a smile, but it was weak. Lena didn’t reflect much upon her childhood, but seeing such a loving family home made her realise how her childhood was a million miles different from what was normal. 

“Sweetie, you’re truly an incredible mom, I bet Annie tells you that all the time too though.” 

“I don’t really know how I raised her before Kara came around, though. She looks up to her so much, it’s kind of impossible to think about having one of them without the other.” 

“I get what you mean, It’s entirely different, but I couldn’t have raised Kara without Alex always being there for her. I guess the biggest part of someone’s childhood is having people to love them. Annie will always have that here with us, She has her grandma and her aunts and her mama, and we won’t be leaving anytime soon!” 

“Can I hug you? If that’s okay?” Lena asked sheepishly after she placed the plates down on the table. She was scared, to say the least, if Eliza said no at this point, she truly would be devastated. 

“Of course you can, sweetie. You’re family! Come here” She beamed and opened her arms, letting the smaller woman fall into them. 

She hugged Lena tightly, holding on to her for as long as she seemed to permit, only letting go when people started to filter into the dining room. There were obvious exclamations made by Kara when she saw the piles of mac and cheese on her plate, easily twice the size of everyone else’s meals. She sat down and immediately tucked in, desperate to not make a huge deal over the fact that she had just seen her girlfriend and her mother hugging.

Family was a huge thing for Kara, in the same way that Annie was a huge thing for Lena. They were one in the same, they came as a package, and Kara was beyond glad to know that not every time they spent together would be as awkward as the first. She knew before this about Lena’s deep rooted issues with her parents, but she never knew that the woman would be truly intimidated by every maternal figure that she encountered. It was an even bigger shock when she thought about how Annie had been raised as the most loved child that she had ever seen. Lena gave the most maternal love of any woman there had ever been, so how could she not believe that she deserved the same. 

“This looks wonderful! Thank you, Eliza.” Kara beamed, shovelling it into her mouth, much to the amusement of her daughter and niece. 

“Mama! You’re funny!” Annie chuckled, sleepily spooning her own dinner into her mouth along with her. She tried her hardest to pull the same silly faces as her mother, laughing and spluttering pieces of her dinner across the table as she did so. 

Lena couldn't help but laugh with them, enjoying the carefree nature of her toddler, and soon everybody else was laughing too. Eliza’s eyes were crinkled at the edges as she beamed along with her family. Annie and Scarlett were giggling together, looking cute as can be in their matching pajamas and pigtails. It was warm and loving, and it felt like home. 

All too soon, it was bedtime. Normally, a simple task, but on christmas eve, with a toddler who was desperate to call her father and meet santa, it was a crazy feat. The process started with screaming as they put out the milk and cookies, to jumping on the beds, to peeking periodically in her stocking, to pretending that she was asleep so she could get up later to check on santa… The entire ordeal could have been considered a chore if Annie’s mother’s weren’t so caught up in their daughter’s happiness. 

It was past midnight by the time that she was finally asleep, so with the presents set under the tree, the two women made their way up to bed. Lena made her way into her girlfriend’s arms, her head finding a place to rest in the crook of Kara’s armpit. She took a deep breath and sighed, pressing a kiss to the nearest piece of skin that she could reach.

“I love you, baby.” Lena mumbled sleepily. She was ridiculously tired and incredibly relaxed after the day that she had had, and Kara was the same as she pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her girlfriend's head. 

“I love you too. Merry Christmas.” Kara whispered as she felt Lena’s breathing even out. It was cosy and peaceful, and it almost didn’t matter that they were both fully aware of the fact they would be woken up in less than five hours by ridiculously excited toddlers.

The sun hadn’t even risen by the time Kara was jolted awake by the sound of footsteps scuttling up the hallway towards their bedroom. She gently shook Lena awake who looked to her with groggy green eyes, messy hair and a tired lopsided smile. 

“First time being woken up by an excited child? It’s the best, I promise.” She couldn’t hide her smile as she thought about the joy on her daughter’s face. She was the happiest little girl, bounding through the door and leaping to the bed with an excited squeal. 

“Mommy, Mama! We has to wake up to see if Santa has comed.” She beamed, tugging on both off their hands to pull them out of bed faster than they were already moving. Her emerald eyes were sparkling, even if they were slightly hidden by her matted hair which fell haphazardly over her face. 

“Okay, pumpkin. Daddy promised he would call you when you woke up, though, do you want to speak to him?” She asked her, her motherly instincts taking over as she combed her hair through with her fingers, trying to untangle the unruly knots. 

“Yes please, Mommy! We can show daddy my presents from Santa!” 

She called his number, pleasantly surprised when it was answered within the first few rings. There was nothing that could beat the bright smile on her daughter’s face as she rambled endlessly about how excited she was to take Scarlett to see if Santa had visited them. It hurt Lena though, thinking about how her dad was so willing to miss out on all of this excitement every year. How was he not fighting harder to keep her around in his life. If she ever had to miss Christmas day with her daughter, hse didn’t know how she would ever forgive herself, but he missed Christmas every year and didn’t have a second thought about it. The whole situation was definitely infuriating. 

Kara could sense the awkward tension between the two parents and reached out to tuck her arm around her girlfriend’s shoulders. She didn’t notice how she had come into the frame of the video call, but she did notice the absolute disgust colouring Andrew’s face as he clocked what was happening. 

“Lena, I need to speak with you alone.” He cut off Annie’s excited rambling with his harsh words and ice cold glare. 

“We can talk later, unless it’s about our Christmas?” She was angry, but the last thing she wanted to do was mess up any chance of a christmas surprise for Annie that her father had planned. 

“Fine, because heaven forbid I get to lead the conversation for once.” He snapped, looking across the room distractedly before Kara broke the silence. 

“After what you’ve put my girls through, you’re lucky that you’re allowed to talk to them at all.” And with that, she hung up the phone, using a weak excuse to let Annie know that everything was still okay.

Needless to say, she wasn’t phased by the anger, her excitement was in full bloom once again as she thought about her presents that were waiting for her underneath the tree. Her excited ramblings filled the air, but neither adult spoke. They muttered meaningless comments to entertain their daughter’s happiness, but there was an anger bubbling deep inside Lena that she hadn’t felt in the longest time. She felt sick, like she needed a break from absolutely everything(which is of course impossible when you’re a full time mother and owner of a multi billion dollar company).

Eliza fussed around all morning, making breakfast and cheering happily as the two children tore the paper away from their misshapen presents. Annie was delighted to unwrap the exact same train set as her cousin, and they both made sure to show them with pride to everyone who was in the room with them. Through all of this, Lena’s face remained blank, a forced smile gracing her lips which everybody could see through. 

“Mommy! I really think you should play trains with me.” Annie whined, her face buried deep in instructions that she couldn’t read. Lena obliged happily, her daughter always being her top priority, even when her head was spinning and she was anxious beyond belief.

She settled onto the floor and sat there for hours, helping Annie with parts that were difficult to put together. She was proud though, her daughter was building something pretty much all by herself, even without the pressure that Lena had been unlucky enough to receive as a child, her daughter was so much like her. 

Time passed so quickly from then on, especially after the mountain of whisky consumed on the part of the CEO, that nobody really noticed the sunset until there were two children at their feet complaining they wanted their dinner. Of course, tiny stomachs were the best way to tell the time. 

They settled into a meal together, Lena absentmindedly cutting her way through the food on Annie’s plate so that it was more manageable for her daughter. She took yet another glass of alcohol, not even Kara was disputing her decision after the conversation that they had with Andrew that morning. She watched with sadness as her girlfriend pushed potatoes and gravy around her plate, preoccupied with the hypnotising sound of the ice tapping the glass as it swished in the whisky. 

Outwardly, Lena was smiling. Of course she was smiling, she had no other choice. As a mother and a girlfriend, there was no room for sadness in her life, especially not when that sadness would ruin her daughter’s first family christmas. Fuck Andrew. Whatever he had to say couldn’t affect her now. Today was her day with her daughter and her girlfriend and she was going to do everything in her power to enjoy it.

At least, that’s what she told herself as the amber liquid sloshed against the walls of her empty stomach when she stood up to take Annie back to her trains. It’s what she told herself as she buried herself up to her head in childish games with her daughter and her niece as the rest of the family whispered their concerns in voices that she thankfully couldn’t hear. 

She kept telling herself she was okay, never once allowing Kara to talk to her about what had happened, pushing it away and burying it down, the same way that Annie would always hide her veggies under her fork when they weren’t cooked in the way that she liked them. In some ways, Lena guessed she had developed childish traits along with her daughter, hiding the things that bothered her, thinking they would never matter and nobody would ever notice.

Kara noticed though. She noticed how Lena got quieter. She noticed how they stopped sleeping together as often. She noticed their romance had been reduced to a kiss good morning and a kiss goodnight. She noticed all the empty bottles around Lena’s office after they returned home. She noticed the effect that Andrew still had on her to this day, and there was no way that she was going to let him drown her beautiful girlfriend and get away with it. 

To her credit, Lena was trying harder that Kara had possibly seen anybody try in her life. She was always awake on time, catering to Annie’s every need, always having dinner on the table, finishing all of her work, constantly smiling to put up a front for her daughter. But when she had gone to bed, the tears and drinks came to surface. She was losing herself in Andrew and the pain he inflicts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO! I hope you enjoyed.  
> I sort of lost my way with this story after I moved out, but (I think) I'm back on it now. I sort of know where I'm going with it again which is really exciting for me.  
> Since the previous chapter, I've started University! My degree is super interesting, but it's potentially the most difficult thing i've ever done...  
> I moved in to my new house with people I'd never met before... Anyways, we all get along really well!!! (Maybe a little too well, one of them is my girlfriend now haha. She's called Annie which makes this story feel a tiny bit weird now... I'm almost excited to finish this story and create a whole new set of OCs to go along with Supercorp...  
> I also broke my right hand (I'm right-handed) so typing anything, including my uni work had been agony... so bear with me for a little while :)  
> Let me know your thoughts and feelings!  
> I'll be a lot less busy over christmas, so I'll try my best to keep the updates coming :)  
> Comments & Kudos are appreciated, as always.  
> Thank you for your patience with this story!!


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